Coil manufacturing method and coil manufacturing apparatus

ABSTRACT

A coil manufacturing method for manufacturing a wave wound coil in a substantially cylindrical shape by shaping a linear conductor with a cross-sectional shape having directionality, including: transferring a linear waver conductor shaped in a substantially rectangular waveform, and having straight side portions extending in a wave width direction, one-side connecting portions sequentially connecting every other pair of adjacent side portions at ends on a one wave width direction side, and other-side connecting portions sequentially connecting pairs of adjacent side portions that are not connected by the one-side connecting portions at ends on an other wave width direction side; bending a target connecting portion, which is at least one of the one-side connecting portions and the other-side connecting portions of the wave conductor, at one position thereof to shape the target connecting portion into a substantially V shape so that the side portions are arranged along a coil circumferential direction and directions of cross-sectional shapes of the side portions are in a constant direction with respect to a coil radial direction; and winding the bent wave conductor on a bobbin.

The disclosure of Japanese Patent Application No. 2009-061745 filed onMar. 13, 2009 including the specification, drawings and abstract isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a coil manufacturing method and a coilmanufacturing apparatus for manufacturing a substantially cylindricalwave wound coil by shaping a linear conductor with a cross-sectionalshape having directionality, and to a coil manufactured by the methodand the apparatus.

DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

Regarding a coil manufacturing method for manufacturing a substantiallycylindrical wave wound coil, a technique is known in which a wave woundcoil is shaped by bundling up a plurality of windings of a linearconductor with a circular cross section having no directionality in aring shape, bending the windings of the linear conductor to make apredetermined star-shaped winding unit, and shaping this star-shapedwinding unit into a cylindrical shape (see, for example, WO 2004/062065Pamphlet listed below). Here, the star-shaped winding unit is a planarwinding unit formed by stacking a plurality of star-shaped patterns,which are each structured such that ends of adjacent straightslot-housed portions are linked alternately on an inner peripheral sideand an outer peripheral side by C-shaped coil end portions. In thistechnique, a cross section flattening process is performed in which eachof the linear conductors forming the slot-housed portions of thestar-shaped winding unit is set in a press forming machine, and each ofthe linear conductors having a circular cross section is deformed so asto have a racetrack-shaped cross section. After this cross sectionflattening process, the star-shaped winding unit is formed into acylindrical shape to complete a wave wound coil.

Regarding the manufacturing method for manufacturing a lap winding coil,a technique is known by which an annular formed coil having asubstantially hexagonal shape is formed by winding a rectangularconductor on a bobbin for a plurality of windings, and a plurality offormed coils are attached to a cylindrical stator core while displacingthe position in a circumferential direction (see, for example, JapanesePatent Application Publication No. JP-A-2008-104293 listed below). Here,the formed coils have a coil end portion which is bend shaped into apredetermined crank shape, so as to allow that the plurality of formedcoils are arranged appropriately along the cylindrical stator core. Atthis time, the coil end portion is shaped into a predetermined shape bypressing a plurality of windings of a linear conductor with a mold atonce.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

When bending the star-shaped winding unit formed by aligning andpositioning a plurality of windings of a linear conductor so as to forma cylindrical shape, the above-described coil manufacturing methoddescribed in above WO 2004/062065 Pamphlet requires a process to bend abundle of the plurality of windings of the linear conductor whiletwisting the bundle. Such a manufacturing process has poor workability,and it is also difficult to align and position the plurality of windingsof the linear conductor in a state of being shaped into a cylindricalshape. Particularly, when using a linear conductor with across-sectional shape having directionality across the entire linearmaterial length direction, part of the linear conductor havingdirectionality is brought into a twisted state. Thus, it becomes moredifficult to align and position the linear conductor forming thesubstantially cylindrical wave wound coil. Therefore, theabove-described coil manufacturing method is not suitable as a methodfor manufacturing the substantially cylindrical wave wound coil byshaping the linear conductor with a cross-sectional shape havingdirectionality, and it is difficult to mass-produce substantiallycylindrical wave wound coils by such a method.

Further, in order to shape a winding unit, which is formed by aligningand positioning such a plurality of windings of a linear conductor, intoa predetermined shape, when the plurality of windings of a linearconductor are shaped by pressing with a metal mold at once similarly tothe technique described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No.JP-A-2008-104293, the force required for pressing with the metal moldincreases as the number of windings increases. During press forming witha metal mold, different windings of the linear conductor moverelatively. Thus, when an insulating film is formed on the surface ofthe linear conductor, portions of this insulating film rub against eachother and get damaged, which may deteriorate the electrical insulationperformance of the insulating film. Moreover, the insulating film formedon the surface of the linear conductor contacting the metal mold may bedamaged by a large load.

The present invention is made in view of the above-described problems,and it is an object of the present invention to provide a coilmanufacturing method and a coil manufacturing apparatus capable ofsequentially shaping a linear conductor with a cross-sectional shapehaving directionality to appropriately manufacture a substantiallycylindrical wave wound coil in which a linear conductor is aligned andpositioned, and further capable of manufacturing such a wave wound coilby appropriately bending the linear conductor, and a coil manufacturedby the method and the apparatus.

To achieve the above-described object, a coil manufacturing method formanufacturing a wave wound coil in a substantially cylindrical shape byshaping a linear conductor with a cross-sectional shape havingdirectionality according to a first aspect of the present invention hasa characteristic structure including: transferring a wave conductor thatis a linear conductor shaped in a substantially rectangular waveform,and has a plurality of straight side portions extending in a wave widthdirection, one-side connecting portions sequentially connecting everyother pair of adjacent side portions at ends on a one wave widthdirection side, and other-side connecting portions sequentiallyconnecting pairs of adjacent side portions that are not connected by theone-side connecting portions at ends on an other wave width directionside; bending a target connecting portion, which is at least one of theone-side connecting portions and the other-side connecting portions ofthe wave conductor, at one position thereof to shape the targetconnecting portion into a substantially V shape so that the plurality ofside portions are arranged along a coil circumferential direction anddirections of cross-sectional shapes of the side portions are in aconstant direction with respect to a coil radial direction; and windingon a bobbin the wave conductor that is bent in the bending.

Note that in this application, the “wave width direction” refers to awave amplitude direction of the wave conductor in a substantiallyrectangular waveform, which is in a direction substantially in parallelwith the coil axis direction in a state that the wave conductor isfinally shaped into the substantially cylindrical wave wound coil.Further, in this application, the “coil circumferential direction” meansa circumferential direction of the substantially cylindrical wave woundcoil, and the “coil radial direction means a radial direction of thesubstantially cylindrical wave wound coil.

With this characteristic structure, with respect to a wave conductorwhich is a linear conductor with a cross-sectional shape havingdirectionality and is shaped into a substantially rectangular waveform,at least either of the one-side connecting portions and the other-sideconnecting portions constituting the wave conductor is a targetconnecting portion, and by appropriately bending the target connectingportion and performing winding, a substantially cylindrical wave woundcoil in which a plurality of side portions are aligned and positioned atappropriate positions and in appropriate directions can be manufactured.At this time, one sequential linear conductor can be shaped sequentiallyfrom one end side to form the substantially cylindrical wave wound coil.Further, with this characteristic structure, appropriate bending can beperformed by a simple process of bending the target connecting portionat one position into a substantially V shape. Such bending of the targetconnecting portion can be performed with a relatively small shapingload, and a space required for bending can be suppressed relativelysmall. Accordingly, bending can be performed appropriately when a linearmaterial length of the target connecting portion is relatively short anda large space for bending is difficult to be secured, such as when thetarget connecting portion is located more inside in the coil radialdirection than the side portions, for example. Therefore, this coilmanufacturing method has excellent workability and is suitable for massproduction.

Here, in the bending, an inner peripheral die having an arc face on aportion contacting the target connecting portion may be used to bend thetarget connecting portion at one position along the inner peripheral dieto shape a portion of the target connecting portion in a linear materiallength direction into a substantially arc shape, so as to shape theentire target connecting portion into a substantially V shape.

With this structure, by a simple process of bending and shaping oneposition of the target connecting portion into a substantially arc shapealong an inner peripheral die, the target connecting portion can beappropriately shaped entirely into a substantially V shape. At thistime, since the target connecting portion is bent and shaped along thearc face which the inner peripheral die has, an excessive load can besuppressed from acting on a bent portion of the target connectingportion. Therefore, also when an insulating film is formed on thesurface of the linear conductor, damage to the insulating film can besuppressed.

Further, in the bending, an outer peripheral die having an arc face onthe portion contacting the target connecting portion may further beused, and the outer peripheral die arranged to face the inner peripheraldie across the target connecting portion may be swung about an arccenter of the arc face of the inner peripheral die so as to bend thetarget connecting portion.

With this structure, by a further simple process of just swinging theouter peripheral die arranged to face the inner peripheral die acrossthe target connecting portion about an arc center of the arc face of theinner peripheral die, the target connecting portion can be appropriatelyshaped entirely into a substantially V shape. Thus, the unit performingthe bending of the target connecting portion can be simplified, and thespace needed for the bending can be suppressed relatively small.Further, by bending using such an inner peripheral die and an outerperipheral die, the target connecting portion can be shaped with asmaller shaping load compared to the case where bending is performed bypressing a substantially V shaped mold against a linear conductor.

Further, in the bending, in a state that a portion of the targetconnecting portion on one side in the linear material length directionwith respect to the outer peripheral die is supported to inhibitmovement of the portion toward at least the outer peripheral die side ina linear material width direction, the outer peripheral die may be swungtoward the other side in the linear material length direction of thetarget connecting portion.

With this structure, when the outer peripheral die is swung toward theother side in the linear material length direction of the targetconnecting portion to bend the target connecting portion, this bendingcan be performed while supporting the target connecting portion so asnot to rotate due to a rotation moment that acts on the targetconnecting portion. Therefore, the target connecting portion can be bentand shaped into a substantially V shape appropriately by swinging theouter peripheral die.

Further, the bending, a bend tool including the inner peripheral die andthe outer peripheral die may be used, the bend tool being structured tobe movable in a direction to approach or depart from the bobbin, andstructured such that the target connecting portion is inserted betweenthe inner peripheral die and the outer peripheral die in a state ofbeing moved toward the bobbin side, and the bend tool may be movedtoward the bobbin side when bending the target connecting portion.

With this structure, while allowing bending of the target connectingportion by moving the bend tool toward the side to approach the bobbinwhen bending the target connecting portion, transfer of the waveconductor including the target connecting portion can be facilitated bymoving the bend tool toward the side to depart from the bobbin whenbending of the target connecting portion is not performed.

Further, in the winding, the bobbin may be rotated and moved insynchronization with the bending so as to wind the wave conductor on thebobbin.

With this structure, since the bobbin is rotated and moved when the waveconductor is wound on the bobbin in synchronization with the bending,the wave conductor can be prevented from being deformed plastically by alarge stress acting on the wave conductor, and the wave conductor can bewound appropriately on the bobbin. Further, since the winding isperformed in synchronization with the bending, a time required formanufacturing the wave wound coil can be reduced.

Further, on an outer peripheral face of the bobbin, a plurality of sideportion retaining units structured to retain the side portions of thewave conductor may be provided along a circumferential direction of thebobbin, the bending may be performed in a state that the side portionlocated on one side in the linear material length direction of thetarget connecting portion is retained in the side portion retainingunits, and in the winding, the side portion located on the other side inthe linear material length direction of the target connecting portionmay be retained in the side portion retaining units by rotating andmoving the bobbin in synchronization with the bending.

With this structure, when the wave conductor that is bent by the bendingis wound on the bobbin, the wound wave conductor can be retainedsecurely so as not to disengage from the bobbin due to springback or thelike. Then the bending is performed in a state that the side portionlocated on one side in the linear material length direction of thetarget connecting portion is retained, and the side portion on the otherside in the linear material length direction of the target connectingportion is retained in the side portion retaining units. Thus, the waveconductor that is bent by the bending can be wound on the bobbinsequentially.

Further, in the winding, the wave conductor may be wound on the bobbinfor a plurality of windings, and after the plurality of windings arewound, the target connecting portions of different windings of the waveconductor be plurally arranged in the coil radial direction.

With this structure, the wave wound coil in which the target connectingportions are plurally arranged in the coil radial direction can bemanufactured appropriately. At this time, the wave conductor that isbent by the bending is wound on the bobbin sequentially, and thus thewave wound coil can be manufactured appropriately by an almost similarmethod even when the number of windings is increased.

Further, in the bending, the inner peripheral die and the outerperipheral die which each have the arc face on the portion contactingthe target connecting portion and are arranged to face each other may beused, and when bending the target connecting portion of a second windingand thereafter, the outer peripheral die arranged to face the innerperipheral die across the target connecting portion of a plurality ofwindings may be swung about an arc center of the arc face of the innerperipheral die so as to bend the target connecting portion of asucceeding winding at one position along the target connecting portionof a preceding winding which is already bent.

With this structure, also when bending the target connecting portion ofthe second winding and thereafter, by a further simple process ofswinging the outer peripheral die arranged to face the inner peripheraldie across the target connecting portion about the arc center of the arcface of the inner peripheral die, the target connecting portion can beappropriately shaped entirely into a substantially V shape. Thus, theunit performing the bending of the target connecting portion can besimplified, and the space needed for the bending can be suppressedrelatively small. At this point, since one position of the targetconnecting portion of the succeeding winding is bent along the targetconnecting portion of the preceding winding which is already bent, thetarget connecting portion of the succeeding winding can be bentappropriately to be arranged in parallel along the target connectingportion of the preceding winding.

Further, a direction substantially orthogonal to a face of the waveconductor before shaped into a substantially cylindrical shape may betaken as a reference direction related to a direction of cross-sectionalshapes of the side portions, and in the bending, the target connectingportion may be bent so that the reference direction is in a directionalong the coil radial direction.

With this structure, when a linear conductor with a cross-sectionalshape having directionality is used, with a direction substantiallyorthogonal to a face of the wave conductor before shaped into asubstantially cylindrical shape being a reference, bending can beperformed appropriately so that all of the side portions to be plurallyarranged in a coil circumferential direction are in the same directionwith respect to the coil radial direction after the substantiallycylindrical wave wound coil is shaped.

Further, as the linear conductor with a cross-sectional shape havingdirectionality, for example a linear conductor with a rectangularcross-sectional shape is used. Such a linear conductor is advantageousbecause, for example, gap portions in slots are reduced when the linearconductor is aligned and positioned in slots formed in an armature core,thereby improving a coil occupancy ratio of the coil.

A coil manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing a wave wound coil in asubstantially cylindrical shape by shaping a linear conductor with across-sectional shape having directionality according to a second aspectof the present invention has a characteristic structure including: atransfer unit transferring a wave conductor that is a linear conductorshaped in a substantially rectangular waveform, and has a plurality ofstraight side portions extending in a wave width direction, one-sideconnecting portions sequentially connecting every other pair of adjacentside portions at ends on a one wave width direction side, and other-sideconnecting portions sequentially connecting pairs of adjacent sideportions that are not connected by the one-side connecting portions atends on an other wave width direction side; a connecting portion bendingunit bending a target connecting portion, which is at least one of theone-side connecting portions and the other-side connecting portions ofthe wave conductor, at one position thereof to shape the targetconnecting portion into a substantially V shape so that the plurality ofside portions are arranged along a coil circumferential direction anddirections of cross-sectional shapes of the side portions are in aconstant direction with respect to a coil radial direction; a bobbinwinding the wave conductor that is bent by the connecting portionbending unit; and a bobbin rotation unit capable of rotating the bobbinabout a center axis.

With this characteristic structure, while a wave conductor which is alinear conductor with a cross-sectional shape having directionality andis shaped into a substantially rectangular waveform is intermittentlytransferred, the connecting portion bending unit can appropriately bendthe target connecting portion, which is at least one of the one-sideconnecting portions and the other-side connecting portions constitutingthe wave conductor. Further, the wave conductor that is bent by theconnecting portion bending unit can be wound on the bobbin appropriatelywhile rotating the bobbin. Thus, a substantially cylindrical wave woundcoil in which a plurality of side portions are aligned and positioned atappropriate positions and in appropriate directions can be manufactured.At this time, one sequential linear conductor can be shaped sequentiallyfrom one end side to form a substantially cylindrical wave wound coil.Further, with this characteristic structure, there is provided theconnecting portion bending unit which bends the target connectingportion at one position to shape the target connecting portion into asubstantially V shape. Thus, the target connecting portion can be bentwith a relatively small shaping load, and a space required for thebending can be suppressed relatively small. Therefore, bending can beperformed appropriately when a linear material length of the targetconnecting portion is relatively short and a large space for bending isdifficult to be secured, such as when the target connecting portion islocated more inside in the coil radial direction than the side portions,for example.

Further the connecting portion bending unit may include a bend toolhaving an inner peripheral die and an outer peripheral die which eachhave an arc face on a portion contacting the target connecting portionand are arranged to face each other, the outer peripheral die beingswingable about an arc center of the arc face of the inner peripheraldie, and the bend tool may be structured to be movable in a direction toapproach or depart from the bobbin, and structured such that the targetconnecting portion is inserted between the inner peripheral die and theouter peripheral die in a state of being moved toward the bobbin side.

With this structure, by a further simple unit which just swings the bendtool having the inner peripheral die and the outer peripheral die, thetarget connecting portion can be appropriately shaped entirely into asubstantially V shape. Further, by bending using such an innerperipheral die and an outer peripheral die, the target connectingportion can be shaped with a smaller shaping load compared to the casewhere processing is performed by pressing a substantially V shaped moldagainst the linear conductor. Furthermore, while allowing bending of thetarget connecting portion by moving the bend tool toward the side toapproach the bobbin when bending the target connecting portion, transferof the wave conductor including the target connecting portion can befacilitated by moving the bend tool toward the side to depart from thebobbin when bending of the target connecting portion is not performed.

Further, a direction substantially orthogonal to a face of the waveconductor before shaped into a substantially cylindrical shape may betaken as a reference direction related to a direction of cross-sectionalshapes of the side portions, and the connecting portion bending unit maybend the target connecting portion so that the reference direction is ina direction along the coil radial direction.

With this structure, when a linear conductor with a cross-sectionalshape having directionality is used, with a direction substantiallyorthogonal to a face of the wave conductor before shaped into asubstantially cylindrical shape being a reference, bending can beperformed appropriately so that all of the plurality of side portions tobe arranged in a coil circumferential direction are in the samedirection with respect to the coil radial direction after thesubstantially cylindrical wave wound coil is shaped.

A coil formed by shaping a linear conductor with a cross-sectional shapehaving directionality into a substantially rectangular waveform and theninto a substantially cylindrical shape according to a third aspect ofthe present invention has a characteristic structure including: aplurality of straight side portions extending in a coil axis direction;one-side connecting portions sequentially connecting every other pair ofside portions adjacent in a coil circumferential direction at ends on aone axial direction side; and other-side connecting portionssequentially connecting pairs of side portions adjacent in the coilcircumferential direction that are not connected by the one-sideconnecting portions at ends on an other axial direction side, in whichthe plurality of side portions are arranged along the coilcircumferential direction with directions of cross-sectional shapes ofthe side portions being in a constant direction with respect to a coilradial direction, and at least either of the one-side connectingportions and the other-side connecting portions are V-shaped connectingportions each bent at one position and shaped into a substantially Vshape so as to project outward in the coil radial direction.

With this characteristic structure, since the plurality of side portionsare arranged along the coil circumferential direction with directions ofcross-sectional shapes of the side portions being in a constantdirection with respect to a coil radial direction, it is particularlysuitable for structuring an armature by inserting the plurality of sideportions respectively in a plurality of slots provided in thecircumferential direction of a cylindrical armature core. Further, inthis coil, to achieve arrangement and directions of such side portions,at least either of the one-side connecting portions and the other-sideconnecting portions are the V-shaped connecting portions each bent atone position and shaped into a substantially V shape so as to projectoutward in the coil radial direction. Such a V-shaped connecting portioncan be shaped by simple bending to just bend at least either of theone-side connecting portions and the other-side connecting portions atone position into a substantially V shape. Further, such bending of theV-shaped connecting portion can be performed with a relatively smallshaping load, and a space required for bending can be suppressedrelatively small. Accordingly, bending can be performed appropriatelyeven when a linear material length of the V-shaped connecting portion isrelatively short and a large space for bending is difficult to besecured, such as when at least either of the one-side connectingportions and the other-side connecting portions are located more insidein the coil radial direction than the side portions, for example,thereby forming the V-shaped connecting portion. Therefore, the coil iseasy to manufacture and has a suitable structure for mass production.

Here, the structure of the coil according to the third aspect of thepresent invention is particularly suitable for a structure in which aportion in the wave width direction of a wave conductor including theV-shaped connecting portions is bent inward in the coil radial directionto be substantially in parallel with a plane orthogonal to the coil axisdirection. Specifically in such a structure, at least either of theone-side connecting portions and the other-side connecting portions tobe V-shaped connecting portions are located more inside in the coilradial direction than the side portions, and linear material lengths ofthe V-shaped connecting portions are relatively short, resulting in adifficulty to secure a large space for bending. However, the structureof the coil according to the third aspect of the present inventionallows bending with a relatively small shaping load in a relativelysmall space. Further, with this structure, the V-shaped connectingportions are located more inside in the coil radial direction than theside portions. Therefore, for example, the wave wound coil can have ashape that can be inserted easily in groove-shaped slots extending in anaxial direction of an armature core, when the wave wound coil isinserted in the slots provided on an inner peripheral face of acylindrical armature core to form an armature.

Further, at least either of the one-side connecting portions and theother-side connecting portions may have a bent portion shaped into asubstantially arc shape in a portion in a linear material lengthdirection, and may be entirely in a substantially V shape havingstraight portions which extend linearly on both sides of the bentportion.

With this structure, for at least ones of the one-side connectingportions and the other-side connecting portions, by simple processing tobend a substantially straight linear conductor at one position in alinear material length direction in a substantially arc shape, at leasteither of the one-side connecting portions and the other-side connectingportions can be shaped into a substantially V shape. Therefore, thebending can be performed with a relatively small shaping load, and aspace required for bending can be suppressed relatively small. Thus, itis possible to reduce manufacturing costs for the coil.

Further, either of the one-side connecting portions and the other-sideconnecting portions may be shaped into a substantially V shape that isbent at one position so as to project outward in the coil radialdirection, and the remaining of the one-side connecting portions and theother-side connecting portions may be shaped substantially entirely intoa substantially arc shape so as to project outward in the coil radialdirection.

With this structure, since the remaining of the one-side connectingportions and the other-side connecting portions are shaped into asubstantially arc shape so as to project outward in the coil radialdirection, and thus have a shape that can be arranged along an outerperiphery of the coil. On the other hand, either of the one-sideconnecting portions and the other-side connecting portions can be shapedby simple processing of just bending at one position to project outwardin the coil radial direction. Such bending of the other-side connectingportions can be performed with a relatively small shaping load, and aspace required for bending can be suppressed relatively small.Therefore, this structure is particularly suitable when the linearmaterial lengths of either of the one-side connecting portions and theother-side connecting portions are relatively short and a large spacefor bending is difficult to be secured, such as when either of theone-side connecting portions and the other-side connecting portions arelocated more inside in the coil radial direction than the side portions,for example.

The structure of the coil according to the present invention is alsosuitable for a coil having a plurality of winding layers of two or morewindings. Such a coil having a plurality of winding layers can have astructure in which the side portions, the one-side connecting portions,and the other-side connecting portions are wound for a plurality ofwindings so that the side portions, the one-side connecting portions,and the other-side connecting portions are plurally arranged in the coilradial direction.

Further, when the cross-sectional shape of the linear conductor isrectangular, two sides in parallel with each other in a rectangularcross section of the side portions may be in a direction along the coilradial direction.

With this structure, the coil can be made suitable for inserting in aplurality of slots arranged at predetermined intervals in acircumferential direction on an inner peripheral face of a cylindricalarmature core, particularly in groove-shaped slots extending in an axialdirection of the armature core and arranged radially along a radialdirection of the armature core.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an explanatory chart showing the order of processes of a coilmanufacturing method according to an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing manufacturing processes of a waveconductor in stages according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the manufacturing processes of thewave conductor in stages according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the manufacturing processes of thewave conductor in stages according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the manufacturing processes of thewave conductor in stages according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the manufacturing processes of thewave conductor in stages according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the manufacturing processes of thewave conductor in stages according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing the manufacturing processes of thewave conductor in stages according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing the manufacturing processes of thewave conductor in stages according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing the manufacturing processes of thewave conductor in stages according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the manufacturing processes of thewave conductor in stages according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 12 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 10;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing the entire structure of the coilmanufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 14 is an explanatory view of a wave conductor forming process and awave conductor forming unit according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 15 is an explanatory view of the wave conductor forming process andthe wave conductor forming unit according to the embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 16 is an explanatory view of the wave conductor forming process andthe wave conductor forming unit according to the embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 17 is an explanatory view of an other-side adjustment bendingprocess and an other-side adjustment bending unit according to theembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 18 is an explanatory view of the other-side adjustment bendingprocess and the other-side adjustment bending unit according to theembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 19 is an explanatory view of a step shaping process and a stepshaping unit according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 20 is an explanatory view of the step shaping process and the stepshaping unit according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 21 is a front view showing a positional relationship of a firstbending unit, a second bending unit, and a winding unit according to theembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 22 is a plan view showing the positional relationship of the firstbending unit, the second bending unit, and the winding unit according tothe embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 23 is a front view showing the structure of a first bending unitaccording to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 24 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing the structure of thefirst bending unit according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 25A to 25E show explanatory views illustrating operation of afirst bending process in stages according to the embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIGS. 26A and 26B show views illustrating operation of a bobbin beforeand after bending in the first bending process according to theembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 27 is an explanatory view of a second bending process according tothe embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 28 is an explanatory view of a second bending process on a secondwinding section according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 29A and 29B show views illustrating operation of the bobbin beforeand after bending in the second bending process according to theembodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 30A and 30B show views illustrating operation of the bobbin beforeand after bending in the first bending process on the second windingsection according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 31A and 31B show views illustrating operation of the bobbin beforeand after bending in the second bending process on the second windingsection according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 32A and 32B show front views illustrating the structure of a sideportion retaining unit according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 33 is a side view showing the structure of the side portionretaining unit according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 34 is a partially cross-sectional plan view of the wave wound coilaccording to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 35A to 35E show explanatory views illustrating operation of afirst bending process in stages according to another embodiment of thepresent invention; and

FIG. 36 is an explanatory view showing an example of a bending positionof a second bending process according to another embodiment of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

A coil manufacturing method and a coil manufacturing apparatus 1 (seeFIG. 13) and a wave wound coil 3C (see FIG. 11) that is a coilmanufactured by the method and the apparatus according to an embodimentof the present invention will be described based on the drawings. Thecoil manufacturing method and the coil manufacturing apparatus 1 are themethod and the apparatus for manufacturing a substantially cylindricalwave wound coil 3C by shaping a linear conductor 3L with across-sectional shape having directionality (see FIG. 2). In thisembodiment, one sequential linear conductor 3L is shaped from one endside sequentially to produce a substantially cylindrical wave wound coil3C. Such a substantially cylindrical wave wound coil 3C is preferablyused as, for example, an armature coil for rotary electrical machine.Here, the “rotary electrical machine” is used as a concept including allof a motor (electric motor), a generator (power generator), and amotor-generator which serves both functions of a motor and a generatorif required. Hereinafter, the coil manufacturing method according tothis embodiment will be described schematically, and thereafter detailsof the structure of the coil manufacturing apparatus 1 and manufacturingprocesses performed using the coil manufacturing apparatus 1 will bedescribed in order.

1. Overview of the Coil Manufacturing Method

The coil manufacturing method according to the embodiment of the presentinvention has a wave conductor forming process P1, an adjustment bendingprocess P2, an other-side bending process P3, a step shaping process P4,a first bending process P5, a second bending process P6, and a windingprocess P7 as shown in FIG. 1. Further, this coil manufacturing methodalso has a transfer process Pf to transfer the wave conductor 3 as thelinear conductor 3L formed in a substantially rectangular waveform,between the processes or simultaneously with the start of one of theprocesses. From FIG. 2 to FIG. 11, manufacturing processes areillustrated in stages, through which a wave conductor 3 formed of thelinear conductor 3L, which is formed in a substantially rectangularwaveform in the wave conductor forming process P1, undergoes eachprocess from the adjustment bending process P2 to the winding processP7, and finally becomes the substantially cylindrical wave wound coil3C. Note that, in the following description, a coil circumferentialdirection CC means a circumferential direction of the substantiallycylindrical wave wound coil 3C to be formed finally, and a coil radialdirection CR means a radial direction of this wave wound coil 3C.

In this embodiment, as the linear conductor 3L with a cross-sectionalshape having directionality, one having a rectangular cross section isused. Specifically, this linear conductor 3L has a rectangular or squarecross-sectional shape, and is a linear conductor having an evencross-sectional shape in a linear material length direction LL. Thislinear conductor 3L is formed of a conductive material capable of beingplastically processed, such as copper or aluminum, and has a surface onwhich an insulating film made of resin, ceramic, or the like is formed.Then the substantially straight linear conductor 3L is supplied to thewave conductor forming process P1.

The wave conductor forming process P1 is a process of forming thesubstantially straight linear conductor 3L in a substantiallyrectangular waveform, as shown in FIG. 2. Here, the linear conductor 3Lshaped in a substantially rectangular waveform will be referred to as awave conductor 3. The wave conductor 3 has a plurality of straight sideportions 31 extending in a wave width direction W, one-side connectingportions 33 sequentially connecting every other pair of adjacent sideportions 31 at ends on a one wave width direction side Wa of the sideportions 31, and other-side connecting portions 35 sequentiallyconnecting pairs of adjacent side portions 31 that are not connected bythe one-side connecting portions 33 at ends on the other wave widthdirection side Wb. In this embodiment, the one-side connecting portions33 and the other-side connecting portions 35 after this wave conductorforming process P1 is performed are each formed in a substantiallystraight form extending in a direction substantially orthogonal to theside portions 31. Here, the wave width direction W is an amplitudedirection of the wave conductor 3 having a substantially rectangularwaveform. This wave width direction W is substantially in parallel witha coil axis direction in a state that the wave conductor 3 is finallyshaped as the substantially cylindrical wave wound coil 3C.

Further, in this embodiment, the substantially straight linear conductor3L is bent to form a portion of one wave cycle PT of the wave conductor3 in one time of the wave conductor forming process P1. That is, in thewave conductor forming process P1, four positions of the substantiallystraight linear conductor 3L are bent substantially perpendicularly inone process to form a substantially S shape, thereby forming a portionof one wave cycle PT of the wave conductor 3. The portion of one wavecycle PT of the wave conductor 3 includes two side portions 31, as wellas the one-side connecting portion 33 and the other-side connectingportion 35. As will be described later, in this embodiment, it isarranged that two windings of the wave conductor 3 are wound on a bobbin71 (see FIG. 13). Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, in thewave conductor forming process P1, a first winding section 3 f of thewave conductor 3 to be radially inside in a state of being wound on thebobbin 71 and a second winding section 3 s of the wave conductor 3 to beradially outside thereof are bent to have different shapes from eachother. Here, particularly the shape of the other-side connecting portion35 is different. Specifically, in the first winding section 3 f, theother-side connecting portions 35 (first winding other-side connectingportions 35F) are formed to only bend substantially orthogonally withrespect to the side portions 31. On the other hand, in the secondwinding section 3 s, the other-side connecting portions 35 (secondwinding other-side connecting portions 35S) are formed by being benttwice in a crank shape and then bent substantially orthogonally withrespect to the side portions 31. Thus, at connections to the sideportions 31 at both ends in the linear material length direction LL ofthe other-side connecting portions 35, recessed portions 35 a which arerecessed on the one wave width direction side Wa are formed.

The wave conductor 3 formed in a substantially rectangular waveform bythe wave conductor forming process P1 is transferred intermittently inthe transfer process Pf. In this embodiment, the intermittent transferis performed with a portion of one wave cycle PT of the wave conductor 3being one pitch. In this transfer process Pf, the wave conductor 3 istransferred with a direction substantially orthogonal to the wave widthdirection W within a plane including plural side portions 31 being atransfer direction F. In this embodiment, the intermittent transfer ofthe wave conductor 3 by the transfer process Pf and the wave conductorforming process P1 are carried out alternately. That is, the portion ofone wave cycle PT of the wave conductor 3 formed by the wave conductorforming process P1 is transferred in the transfer direction F every timethe wave conductor forming process P1 is performed.

As a post process of the wave conductor forming process P1, theadjustment bending process P2 is performed. In this embodiment, as shownin FIG. 3, the adjustment bending process P2 is performed from aposition at three pitches (three wave cycles) on a transfer directiondownstream side Fb with respect to the wave conductor forming processP1. FIG. 3 shows a state that intermittent transfer by two pitches withrespect to FIG. 2 is performed. In this embodiment, the adjustmentbending process P2 has a one-side adjustment bending process P2 a and another-side adjustment bending process P2 b. In this embodiment, theone-side adjustment bending process P2 a and the other-side adjustmentbending process P2 b are performed substantially simultaneously on theone-side connecting portion 33 and the other-side connecting portion 35respectively, which are adjacent to each other in the transfer directionF. The one-side adjustment bending process P2 a is a process of bendshaping the vicinity of the one-side connecting portion 33, and theother-side adjustment bending process P2 b is a process of bend shapingthe vicinity of the other-side connecting portion 35. These adjustmentbending processes P2 are processes of bend shaping the vicinity of theone-side connecting portion 33 or the vicinity of the other-sideconnecting portion 35 so that positions of the one-side connectingportion 33 and the other-side connecting portion 35 in the coil radialdirection CR are located appropriately in a state that the waveconductor 3 is finally shaped as the cylindrical wave wound coil 3C. Inthis embodiment, as will be described later, it is structured that twowindings of the wave conductor 3 are wound on the bobbin 71 (see FIG.13). Accordingly, particularly in the other-side adjustment bendingprocess P2 b, the vicinity of the other-side connecting portion 35 ofthe wave conductor 3 is bent and shaped into a different shape in eachwinding so that the other-side connecting portion 35 is at a differentposition in the coil radial direction CR in each winding.

Specifically, in the one-side adjustment bending process P2 a, theone-side connecting portion 33 is bent and shaped to be offset outwardin the coil radial direction CR from side portions 31. In thisembodiment, on a transfer direction upstream side Fa with respect to thebending position of the first bending process P5 which will be describedlater, the wave conductor 3 is transferred in a direction such that theoutside in the coil radial direction CR in a state of being shaped asthe wave wound coil 3C is a vertically upper side. Therefore, in thisone-side adjustment bending process P2 a, the one-side connectingportion 33 is bent and shaped so as to rise vertically upward withrespect to the side portions 31. Here, the side portions 31 in thevicinity of the one-side connecting portion 33 are bent twice in a crankshape to form a step portion, and thereby the one-side connectingportion 33 is offset vertically upward from the side portions 31. Notethat upper sides in the diagrams of FIG. 2 to FIG. 11 match thevertically upper side. In this one-side adjustment bending process P2 a,bend shaping into a common shape is performed for the first windingsection 3 f and the second winding section 3 s, which become differentwindings of the wave conductor 3.

On the other hand, in the other-side adjustment bending process P2 b,the vicinity of the other-side connecting portion 35 of the waveconductor 3 is bent and shaped into a different shape in each winding.In this embodiment, the other-side connecting portion 35 constitutingthe second winding section 3 s (hereinafter referred to as a “secondwinding other-side connecting portion 35S”) is not bent and shaped, andonly the other-side connecting portion 35 constituting the first windingsection 3 f (hereinafter referred to as a “first winding other-sideconnecting portion 35F”) is bent and shaped. Specifically, the firstwinding other-side connecting portion 35F is bent and shaped to beoffset outward in the coil radial direction CR from the side portions31. That is, in this other-side adjustment bending process P2 b, theother-side connecting portion 35 is bent and shaped so as to risevertically upward with respect to the side portions 31. The offsetamount of the other-side connecting portion 35 from the side portions 31at this time is set equal to a linear material width of the linearconductor 3L forming the wave conductor 3. Note that the linear materialwidth of the linear conductor 3L here is the width (thickness) in thecoil radial direction CR of the linear material forming the linearconductor 3L. Here, the side portions 31 in the vicinity of theother-side connecting portion 35 are bent twice in a crank shape to forma step portion, and thereby the other-side connecting portion 35 isoffset vertically upward from the side portions 31.

As a post process of the adjustment bending process P2, the other-sidebending process P3 is performed. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4,the other-side bending process P3 is performed from a position at twopitches (two wave cycles) on the transfer direction downstream side Fbwith respect to the other-side adjustment bending process P2 b. FIG. 4shows a state that intermittent transfer by two pitches with respect toFIG. 3 is performed. The other-side bending process P3 is a process inwhich a portion of the wave conductor 3 on the other wave widthdirection side Wb including the other-side connecting portion 35 is bentinward in the coil radial direction CR (here, vertically downward).Here, the region of this portion of the wave conductor 3 on the otherwave width direction side Wb to be bent in the other-side bendingprocess P3 will be referred to as an other-side end face forming region37. The other-side end face forming region 37 is structured includingthe entire other-side connecting portion 35 and portions of the sideportions 31 in the vicinity of this other-side connecting portion 35.Further, in this embodiment, the other-side end face forming region 37includes a step portion formed by bending the side portions 31 in acrank shape in the other-side adjustment bending process P2 b. Then inthis other-side bending process P3, the other-side end face formingregion 37 is bent at a predetermined bending angle from the sideportions 31 on the one wave width direction side Wa with respect to theother-side end face forming region 37. In this embodiment, this bendangle is set to a substantially right angle, which is the same for thefirst winding section 3 f and the second winding section 3 s.

As a post process of the other-side bending process P3, the step shapingprocess P4 is performed. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, thestep shaping process P4 is performed from a position at one pitch (onewave cycle PT) on the transfer direction downstream side Fb from theother-side bending process P3. FIG. 5 shows a state that intermittenttransfer by two pitches with respect to FIG. 4 is performed. The stepshaping process P4 is a process of forming a step portion 35 b at oneposition in the linear material length direction LL (transfer directionF) of the other-side connecting portion 35. In this embodiment, a stepportion 35 b on the wave width direction W (coil axis direction) isformed on the other-side connecting portion 35. Specifically, the stepportion 35 b is formed such that a portion of the other-side connectingportion 35 on the transfer direction downstream side Fb with respect tothe step portion 35 b is situated on the more other wave width directionside Wb as compared to a portion thereof on the transfer directionupstream side Fa. As shown in FIG. 9, this step portion 35 b is formedin both the first winding other-side connecting portions 35F and thesecond winding other-side connecting portions 35S.

As a post process of the step shaping process P4, the first bendingprocess P5 and the second bending process P6 are performed. In thisembodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, the first bending process P5 isperformed from a position at four pitches (four wave cycles) on thetransfer direction downstream side Fb from the one-side adjustmentbending process P2 a. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6, the secondbending process P6 is performed from a position at three pitches (threewave cycles) on the transfer direction downstream side Fb from theposition in the other-side bending process P3. In comparison with thefirst bending process P5, the second bending process P6 is performedfrom a position at 1.5 pitch (1.5 wave cycle) on the transfer directiondownstream side Fb from the position in the first bending process P5.

The first bending process P5 and the second bending process P6 are aprocess of bending, as shown in FIG. 34 and so on, the one-sideconnecting portion 33 and the other-side connecting portion 35 so that aplurality of side portions 31 are arranged along the coilcircumferential direction CC, and directions of cross-sectional shapesof the side portions 31 are in a constant direction with respect to thecoil radial direction CR. Accordingly, as shown from FIG. 9 to FIG. 11and so on, in portions of the wave conductor 3 after the first bendingprocess P5 and the second bending process P6 are finished, a pluralityof side portions 31 are arranged in the coil circumferential directionCC along an outer peripheral face of a substantially cylindrical shapeof the wave wound coil 3C to be finally formed. In this state, moreover,cross-sectional shapes of the side portions 31 are formed to be in adirection along a radial direction of the substantially cylindricalshape of the wave wound coil 3C. In this embodiment, since the sideportion 31 has a rectangular cross-sectional shape, a direction in whichtwo sides in parallel with each other in this rectangular cross sectionbecome substantially in parallel with the coil radial direction CR isarranged along the coil radial direction CR. Here, the process ofbending the one-side connecting portion 33 is the first bending processP5, and the process of bending the other-side connecting portion 35 isthe second bending process P6. In both the first bending process P5 andthe second bending process P6, the one-side connecting portion 33 or theother-side connecting portion 35 is bent to project outward in the coilradial direction CR. The second bending process P6 is performed as apost process of the first bending process P5.

In this embodiment, the first bending process P5 is a process of shapingthe substantially entire one-side connecting portion 33 into asubstantially arc shape, as shown in FIG. 5. In this first bendingprocess P5, the one-side connecting portion 33 is shaped into asubstantially arc shape which curves to project outward in the coilradial direction CR. This shaping is performed so that the one-sideconnecting portion 33 in a substantially arc shape after shaped in thisfirst bending process P5 has a radius of curvature equal to a radius ofthe outer peripheral face formed by the one-side connecting portion 33in the substantially cylindrical wave wound coil 3C that is formedfinally. Note that in this embodiment, the one-side connecting portion33 after shaped in this first bending process P5 has a step portion 33 aat one position on this one-side connecting portion 33 in the linearmaterial length direction LL (transfer direction F). This step portion33 a is in the coil radial direction CR. Specifically, the step portion33 a is formed such that a portion of the one-side connecting portion 33on the transfer direction downstream side Fb with respect to the stepportion 33 a is located outside in the coil radial direction CR ascompared to a portion thereof on the transfer direction upstream sideFa. This step portion 33 a is formed in both the one-side connectingportions 33 constituting the first winding section 3 f (hereinafterreferred to as “first winding one-side connecting portions 33F”) and theone-side connecting portions 33 constituting the second winding section3 s (hereinafter referred to as “second winding one-side connectingportions 33S”). However, the position of the step portion 33 a in thelinear material length direction LL (transfer direction F) of theone-side connecting portion 33 is different between the first windingsection 3 f and the second winding section 3 s. Specifically, the stepportion 33 a formed in a second winding one-side connecting portion 33Sis formed to be situated on the more transfer direction upstream side Fathan the step portion 33 a formed in a first winding one-side connectingportion 33F. Thus, the one-side connecting portions 33 are shaped into adifferent shape in each winding in the first bending process P5, andthereby the one-side connecting portions 33 in different windings of thewave conductor 3 are plurally arranged in parallel appropriately in thecoil radial direction CR, as shown in FIG. 10 and FIG. 11.

In this embodiment, the second bending process P6 is a process ofbending the other-side connecting portion 35 at one position into asubstantially V shape, as shown in FIG. 6. In this second bendingprocess P6, the other-side connecting portion 35 is shaped in asubstantially V shape that is bent to project outward in the coil radialdirection CR. As also shown in FIG. 34, the other-side connectingportion 35 after shaped in this second bending process P6 is shaped sothat a linear material length direction LL of a straight portion formingthe substantially V shape is in a direction substantially orthogonal tothe coil radial direction CR. Incidentally, in this embodiment, a bentportion 35 c by the second bending process P6 is set at substantiallythe same position as the step portion 35 b in the other-side connectingportion 35. As shown in FIG. 10, by this second bending process P6, boththe first winding other-side connecting portions 35F and the secondwinding other-side connecting portions 35S are shaped in a substantiallyV shape. However, the bent shape of the other-side connecting portion 35is different between the first winding section 3 f and the secondwinding section 3 s.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10 and FIG. 11, in a state of thesubstantially cylindrical wave wound coil 3C that is finally formed, thefirst winding other-side connecting portion 35F and the second windingother-side connecting portion 35S are arranged adjacent to each other inthe coil radial direction CR. Such an arrangement structure is achievedby that, as shown in FIG. 12 that is a partially enlarged view of FIG.10, the recessed portions 35 a are formed in the second windingother-side connecting portion 35S in the wave conductor forming processP1, and the first winding other-side connecting portion 35F is bent andshaped to be offset toward the other wave width direction side Wb fromthe side portions 31 in the other-side adjustment bending process P2 b.That is, the portion of the first winding other-side connecting portion35F that is offset toward the other wave width direction side Wb fits inthe recessed portions 35 a of a second winding other-side connectingportion 35S, and thereby the first winding other-side connecting portion35F and the second winding other-side connecting portion 35S arearranged at the same position in the wave width direction W (coil axisdirection). In this state, the second winding other-side connectingportion 35S is arranged outside in the coil radial direction CR adjacentto the first winding other-side connecting portion 35F. In addition,bend shaping of the second winding other-side connecting portion 35S inthe second bending process P6 is performed in a state that the secondwinding other-side connecting portion 35S is arranged outside in thecoil radial direction CR with respect to the first winding other-sideconnecting portion 35F already bent and shaped in a substantially Vshape. Accordingly, in this embodiment, the second winding other-sideconnecting portion 35S is bent at one position abutting on the alreadybent first winding other-side connecting portion 35F, and is therebyshaped into a substantially V shape abutting on the first windingother-side connecting portion 35F. Thus, the other-side connectingportions 35 are shaped into a different shape in each winding in thesecond bending process P6, and thereby the other-side connectingportions 35 in different windings of the wave conductor 3 are plurallyarranged in parallel appropriately in the coil radial direction CR, asshown in FIG. 10 to FIG. 12.

The winding process P7 is a process of winding the wave conductor 3 bendprocessed in the first bending process P5 and the second bending processP6 on the bobbin 71 (see FIG. 13). Although the bobbin 71 is omitted inFIG. 2 to FIG. 12, the portion of the wave conductor 3 on which both thefirst bending process P5 and the second bending process P6 are finishedare formed in the substantially cylindrical shape of the wave wound coil3C to be formed finally, as shown in FIG. 6 to FIG. 11. In the windingprocess P7, the portion of the wave conductor 3 thus shaped in thesubstantially cylindrical shape is wound on the bobbin 71. Specifically,in the state shown in FIG. 6, the first bending process P5 and thesecond bending process P6 are finished on both the other-side connectingportion 35 and the one-side connecting portion 33 on the most downstreamside in the transfer direction F, and a portion of the wave conductor 3including the three side portions 31 connected to both ends of theseother-side connecting portion 35 and one-side connecting portion 33 isformed in a substantially cylindrical shape and wound on the bobbin 71.Thereafter, when the second bending process P6 is performed as shown inFIG. 8 after being through the first bending process P5 shown in FIG. 7,the next portion of one wave cycle PT of the wave conductor 3 is woundon the bobbin 71 in the winding process P7. Thereafter, by performingthe first bending process P5 and the second bending process P6 in asimilar manner, the wave conductor 3 is wound on the bobbin 71 by eachone wave cycle PT in the winding process P7.

In this embodiment, the second bending process P6 is a post process ofthe first bending process P5. At the point when the second bendingprocess P6 is finished, the wave conductor 3 on the transfer directiondownstream side Fb with respect to the processed position by the secondbending process P6 is finally formed in the substantially cylindricalshape of the wave wound coil 3C. Therefore, in this embodiment, thewinding process P7 is performed in synchronization with the secondbending process P6. At the same time as the second bending process P6 isfinished, the winding process P7 of a portion of one wave cycle PT ofthe wave conductor 3 is finished. The wave conductor 3 and operation ofthe bobbin 71 when performing the second bending process P6 and thewinding process P7 simultaneously will be described in detail later. Asshown in FIG. 9 to FIG. 11, in this winding process P7, finally twowindings of the wave conductor 3 are wound on the bobbin 71, and afterthe two windings are wound, two side portions 31 in different windingsof the wave conductor 3 are arranged in the coil radial direction CR.

2. Overall Structure of the Coil Manufacturing Apparatus

Next, the overall structure of the coil manufacturing apparatus 1 forcarrying out the coil manufacturing method according to this embodimentwill be described schematically. The coil manufacturing apparatus 1according to this embodiment has, as shown in FIG. 13, a wave conductorforming unit 11 for performing the wave conductor forming process P1, aone-side adjustment bending unit 12 for performing the one-sideadjustment bending process P2 a, an other-side adjustment bending unit13 for performing the other-side adjustment bending process P2 b, another-side bending unit 14 for performing the other-side bending processP3, a step shaping unit 15 for performing the step shaping process P4, afirst bending unit 5 for performing the first bending process P5, asecond bending unit 6 for performing the second bending process P6, awinding unit 7 for performing the winding process P7, and a transferunit 4 for performing the transfer process Pf.

In this embodiment, these units are arranged along the transferdirection F of the wave conductor 3 in the following order.Specifically, as shown in FIG. 13, the wave conductor forming unit 11 isarranged on the most upstream side in the transfer direction F. Further,the one-side adjustment bending unit 12, the other-side adjustmentbending unit 13, the other-side bending unit 14, and the step shapingunit 15 are arranged in order toward the transfer direction downstreamside Fb from the wave conductor forming unit 11. Then the first bendingunit 5, the second bending unit 6, and the winding unit 7 are arrangedon the transfer direction downstream side Fb with respect to the stepshaping unit 15.

In this embodiment, the first bending unit 5 bends the wave conductor 3so as to curve the wave conductor 3 downward. Therefore, as shown inFIG. 6 to FIG. 10, on the transfer direction downstream side Fb withrespect to the bending position of the first bending unit 5, thetransfer direction F of the wave conductor 3 gradually curves downward.The second bending unit 6 is arranged on the transfer directiondownstream side Fb with respect to the bending position of the firstbending unit 5 along the transfer direction F of the wave conductor 3thus curving downward. Specifically, the second bending unit 6 isarranged at a position separated by one or more wave cycles PT (here 1.5wave cycle) of the wave conductor 3 on the transfer direction downstreamside Fb, with respect to the bending position of the first bending unit5. The second bending unit 6 then bends the wave conductor 3 in the samedirection as that by the first bending unit 5, so as to form the waveconductor 3 in a substantially cylindrical shape. Accordingly, the waveconductor 3 is bent so as to roll inward in the coil radial directionCR, and a portion of the wave conductor 3 on the transfer directiondownstream side Fb with respect to the bending position of the secondbending unit 6 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape. Thebobbin 71 constituting the winding unit 7 is arranged lower than thebending position of the first bending unit 5, and is structured to becapable of appropriately winding the wave conductor 3 which is bent bythe first bending unit 5 and the second bending unit 6 in asubstantially cylindrical shape. Therefore, on the transfer directiondownstream side Fb with respect to the bending position of the secondbending unit 6, the transfer direction F of the wave conductor 3 curvesalong a direction of winding the wave conductor 3 on the bobbin 71 (therotational direction of the bobbin 71).

The transfer unit 4 is a unit for performing the transfer process Pf totransfer the wave conductor 3. For this purpose, the transfer unit 4includes a conveyor 41 and a transfer drive unit 42 for driving thisconveyor 41. The conveyor 41 accepts a wave conductor 3 to be placed onits transfer surface, and transfers this wave conductor 3 toward thetransfer direction downstream side Fb. Here the conveyor 41 transfersthe wave conductor 3 from the wave conductor forming unit 11 to thefirst bending unit 5. The transfer drive unit 42 drives the conveyor 41.In this embodiment, the transfer unit 4 performs intermittent transferwith one wave cycle PT of the wave conductor 3 being one pitch.Therefore, the transfer drive unit 42 repeats driving and stopping theconveyor 41 by the transfer amount corresponding to one wave cycle PT ofthe wave conductor 3 at predetermined time intervals. Structures ofthese units constituting this coil manufacturing apparatus 1 and detailsof respective manufacturing processes performed by these units will bedescribed below.

3. The Wave Conductor Forming Process and Wave Conductor Forming Unit

First, the wave conductor forming process P1 and the wave conductorforming unit 11 will be described. The wave conductor forming unit 11 isa unit for performing the wave conductor forming process P1, and bendsand shapes the substantially straight linear conductor 3L into asubstantially rectangular waveform. As shown in FIG. 14 to FIG. 16, thewave conductor forming unit 11 is structured having five retainers,first retainer 11 a to fifth retainer 11 e, for retaining portions ofthe linear conductor 3L. These five retainers 11 a to 11 e each includea linear groove 11 f in which the straight linear conductor 3L is fittedand retained, and are coupled in series from the first retainer 11 a tothe fifth retainer 11 e in this order. Two adjacent retainers arecoupled relatively pivotally via a pivot 11 g.

These five retainers 11 a to 11 e are structured such that the grooves11 f of all the retainers can be aligned in a straight line, as shown inFIG. 14. All centers of pivots 11 g each coupling two retainers arearranged along the grooves 11 f, which are arranged in a straight line.As shown in FIG. 15 and FIG. 16, the five retainers 11 a to 11 e pivotrelatively in a predetermined direction about the respective pivots 11g, so as to bend and shape the linear conductor 3L retained in thegrooves 11 f between two retainers. At this point, the two retainers arestructured to be capable of bending at substantially right angles in apredetermined direction. Here, in plan views shown in FIG. 14 to FIG.16, bending occurs clockwise between the first retainer 11 a and thesecond retainer 11 b and between the second retainer 11 b and the thirdretainer 11 c, and bending occurs counterclockwise between the thirdretainer 11 c and the fourth retainer 11 d and between the fourthretainer 11 d and the fifth retainer 11 e. Further, between these tworetainers, a columnar bend die 11 h (bend pin) is provided inside in thebending direction with respect to the pivot 11 g. Therefore, as shown inFIG. 15 and FIG. 16, by bending two adjacent retainers, the linearconductor 3L retained in the respective grooves 11 f of the retainers 11a to 11 e is bent along outer peripheral faces of the bend dies 11 h inthe retainers. Incidentally, as shown in FIG. 4 and so on, to form therecessed portions 35 a in connecting portions with side portions 31 onthe second winding other-side connecting portions 35S, a wave conductorforming unit 11 for the second winding section 3 s is used that isdifferent from the shown unit in arrangement of the bend dies 11 h,which are arranged on the peripheries of the pivots 11 g, and so on.

In the wave conductor forming process P1, the wave conductor formingunit 11 as described above is used to bend the straight linear conductor3L at substantially right angles at four positions in the linearmaterial length direction LL, so as to form a portion of one wave cyclePT of the wave conductor 3 in a substantially S shape. At this point,the linear conductor 3L is bent along the outer peripheral faces of thecolumnar bend dies 11 h, and thus each bent portion of the waveconductor 3 is shaped into a substantially arc shape. Note that theshape of the bend die 11 h is not limited to a columnar shape, and anydie in a shape having an arc face at least on a portion contacting thelinear conductor 3L can be used preferably. Therefore, for example, amember in which only a portion contacting the linear conductor 3L isformed as an arc face and other portions have an outer face formed of acombination of one or more flat faces may preferably be used as the benddie 11 h.

4. The Adjustment Bending Processes and Adjustment Bending Units, andthe Other-Side Bending Process and Other-Side Bending Unit

Next, the one-side adjustment bending process P2 a, the other-sideadjustment bending process P2 b, and the other-side bending process P3,as well as the one-side adjustment bending unit 12, the other-sideadjustment bending unit 13, and the other-side bending unit 14 forperforming these processes will be described.

The one-side adjustment bending unit 12 is a unit for performing theone-side adjustment bending process P2 a, and bends the side portions 31in the vicinity of the one-side connecting portion 33 so that theposition of the one-side connecting portion 33 in the coil radialdirection CR is located appropriately. In this embodiment, as shown bythe shape of the wave conductor 3 at the bending position of theone-side adjustment bending process P2 a in FIG. 3, the one-sideadjustment bending unit 12 bends the side portions 31 in the vicinity ofthe one-side connecting portion 33 twice in a crank shape to form a stepportion, so that the one-side connecting portion 33 is offset verticallyupward from the side portions 31 (outward in the coil radial directionCR).

The other-side adjustment bending unit 13 is a unit for performing theother-side adjustment bending process P2 b, and bends the side portions31 in the vicinity of the other-side connecting portion 35 so that theposition of the other-side connecting portion 35 in the coil radialdirection CR is located appropriately. In this embodiment, as shown bythe shape of the wave conductor 3 at the bending position of theother-side adjustment bending process P2 b in FIG. 3, the other-sideadjustment bending unit 13 bends the side portions 31 in the vicinity ofthe other-side connecting portion 35 twice in a crank shape to form astep portion so that the other-side connecting portion 35 is offsetvertically upward from the side portions 31 (outward in the coil radialdirection CR).

The other-side bending unit 14 is a unit for performing the other-sidebending process P3, and bends the other-side end face forming region 37including the other-side connecting portion 35 inward in the coil radialdirection CR. In this embodiment, as shown by the shape of the waveconductor 3 at the bending position of the other-side bending process P3in FIG. 4, the other-side bending unit bends the other-side end faceforming region 37 at a predetermined bending angle (here at asubstantially right angle) with respect to the side portions 31 on theone wave width direction side Wa with respect to the other-side end faceforming region 37.

The one-side adjustment bending unit 12, the other-side adjustmentbending unit 13, and the other-side bending unit 14 all bend sideportions 31 in the coil radial direction CR. Since these units aremerely different in bending direction and bending angle, the bendingunits 12 to 14 can be formed using a similar unit. Accordingly, as aspecific structural example of such bending units 12 to 14, an exampleof the other-side adjustment bending unit 13 shown in FIG. 17 and FIG.18 is used for explanation, and descriptions of the one-side adjustmentbending unit 12 and the other-side bending unit 14 are omitted.

As shown in FIG. 17 and FIG. 18, the other-side adjustment bending unit13 includes a bend tool 13 a having an inner peripheral die 13 b (innerperipheral pin) and an outer peripheral die 13 c (outer peripheral pin),which are both columnar and arranged to face each other, the outerperipheral die 13 c being swingable about the center axis of the innerperipheral die 13 b. In this embodiment, the outer peripheral die 13 cswings toward an end side in the wave width direction W (here the otherwave width direction side Wb). The other-side adjustment bending unit 13also includes support members 13 d arranged on a center side in the wavewidth direction W (here the one wave width direction side Wa) withrespect to the outer peripheral die 13 c and supporting a side portion31 to inhibit movement of the side portion 31 in a linear material widthdirection LW when being bent. Here, the support members 13 d are formedby two columnar members (support pins) arranged to face each otheracross the side portion 31.

As shown in FIG. 18, in a state that the side portion 31 is inserted tospaces between the inner peripheral die 13 b and the outer peripheraldie 13 c and between the two columnar members forming the supportmembers 13 d, the bend tool 13 a is swung so as to swing the outerperipheral die 13 c about the center axis of the inner peripheral die 13b, and the side portion 31 is bent at one position along the outerperipheral face of the inner peripheral die 13 b. Thus, a portion of theside portion 31 in the linear material length direction LL is bent andshaped into a substantially arc shape. The support members 13 d sandwichthe side portion 31 on the center side in the wave width direction W(the one wave width direction side Wa) that is opposite to a swingdirection of the outer peripheral die 13 c with respect to the outerperipheral die 13 c, thereby supporting the side portion 31 to inhibitthe movement of the side portion 31 toward the outer peripheral die 13 cside in the linear material width direction LW. Thus, the supportmembers 13 d serve a function to provide support such that a portion ofthe side portion 31 on the center side in the wave width direction W(the one wave width direction side Wa) with respect to the bendingposition is prevented from rotating due to a rotation moment that actson the side portion 31 during bending. Note that shapes of the innerperipheral die 13 b and the outer peripheral die 13 c are not limited toa columnar shape, and any die in a shape having an arc face at least ona portion contacting the side portion 31 may be used preferably.Therefore, for example, a member in which only a portion contacting theside portion 31 is formed as an arc face and other portions have anouter face formed of a combination of one or more flat faces maypreferably be used as the inner peripheral die 13 b or outer peripheraldie 13 c. Further, the support members 13 d are not limited to acolumnar shape, and members with various shapes such as a rectangularparallelepiped shape may also be used.

Further, the bend tool 13 a and the support members 13 d are structuredto be movable in a direction to approach or depart from the side portion31 as a process target, here in a direction parallel to the center axesof the inner peripheral die 13 b and the outer peripheral die 13 c. In astate that the bend tool 13 a and the support members 13 d are moved tothe side portion 31 side, it is structured to insert the side portion 31to the spaces between the inner peripheral die 13 b and the outerperipheral die 13 c and between the two columnar members forming thesupport members 13 d. In this embodiment, the bend tool 13 a and thesupport members 13 d are supported at a height of a transfer surface ofthe wave conductor 3 by a common base member 13 e. Here, although thesupport members 13 d are fixed to the base member 13 e, the bend tool 13a is supported rotatably by the base member 13 e. In this embodiment,the bend tool 13 a and the support members 13 d are structured to bemovable together with the base member 13 e in a direction to approach ordepart from the side portion 31 as a process target. The base member 13e is structured to be movable also in the wave width direction W. Thus,the other-side adjustment bending unit 13 is cable of bending anappropriate position of the side portion 31 by moving the bend tool 13 aand the support members 13 d in the linear material length direction LLof the side portion 31, and facilitates transfer of the wave conductor 3when intermittently transferring the wave conductor 3 by moving in adirection to depart from the wave conductor 3 in the wave widthdirection W. Further, in this embodiment, to simultaneously bend twoside portions 31 in parallel with each other, which are connected toboth ends of the other-side connecting portion 35, two such other-sideadjustment bending units 13 are arranged to face each other. These twoother-side adjustment bending units 13 are arranged in a mirror symmetryand operate in a mirror symmetry.

In the other-side adjustment bending process P2 b, such an other-sideadjustment bending unit 13 is used to bend the side portions 31 in thevicinity of the other-side connecting portion 35 twice in a crank shapeto form a step portion, so that the other-side connecting portion 35 isoffset vertically upward from the side portions 31, as shown in FIG. 3.Similarly, in the one-side adjustment bending process P2 a, the one-sideadjustment bending unit 12 having a similar structure to the other-sideadjustment bending unit 13 is used to bend the side portions 31 in thevicinity of the one-side connecting portion 33 twice in a crank shape toform a step portion so that the one-side connecting portion 33 is offsetvertically upward from the side portions 31, as shown in FIG. 3. In theother-side bending process P3, the other-side bending unit 14 having asimilar structure to the other-side adjustment bending unit 13 is usedto bend the other-side end face forming region 37 including theother-side connecting portion 35 once to form a predetermined bendingangle (here a substantially right angle) with the side portions 31 onthe one wave width direction side Wa with respect to the other-side endface forming region 37, as shown in FIG. 4.

5. The Step Shaping Process and Step Shaping Unit

Next, the step shaping process P4 and the step shaping unit 15 will bedescribed. The step shaping unit 15 is a unit for performing the stepshaping process P4, and performs bending to form a step portion 35 b atone position of the other-side connecting portion 35 in the linearmaterial length direction LL (transfer direction F). As shown in FIG. 19and FIG. 20, the step shaping unit 15 includes a bend tool 15 a havingan inner peripheral die 15 b (inner peripheral pin) and an outerperipheral die 15 c (outer peripheral pin), which are both columnar andarranged to face each other, the outer peripheral die 15 c beingswingable about the center axis of the inner peripheral die 15 b. Inthis embodiment, the outer peripheral die 15 c swings toward one side inthe linear material length direction LL (here the transfer directiondownstream side Fb) of the other-side connecting portion 35. The stepshaping unit 15 also includes a support member 15 d that is arranged ona side opposite to a swing direction of the outer peripheral die 15 c(here the transfer direction upstream side Fa) with respect to the outerperipheral die 15 c and that supports the other-side connecting portion35 to inhibit movement of the other-side connecting portion 35 in thelinear material width direction LW when being bent. Here, the supportmember 15 d is formed of one columnar member (support pin) arranged onthe outer peripheral die 15 c side in the linear material widthdirection LW of the other-side connecting portion 35 with respect to theother-side connecting portion 35. Furthermore, the step shaping unit 15also includes an abutting die 15 e arranged on the outer peripheral die15 c side in the swing direction (here the transfer direction downstreamside Fb) with respect to the outer peripheral die 15 c to providesupport by abutment such that a portion of the other-side connectingportion 35 on the swing direction side of the outer peripheral die 15 cwhen being bent becomes parallel to the linear material length directionLL of the other-side connecting portion 35 before being bent. Here, theabutting die 15 e is formed of one rectangular column member arranged onthe inner peripheral die 15 b side in the linear material widthdirection LW of the other-side connecting portion 35 with respect to theother-side connecting portion 35.

Then as shown in FIG. 20, in a state that the other-side connectingportion 35 is inserted between the inner peripheral die 15 b and theouter peripheral die 15 c, swinging the bend tool 15 a causes the outerperipheral die 15 c to swing about the center axis of the innerperipheral die 15 b, thereby bending the other-side connecting portion35 at one position along the outer peripheral face of the innerperipheral die 15 b. At this point, the portion of the other-sideconnecting portion 35 on the swing direction side of the outerperipheral die 15 c attempts to pivot toward the inner peripheral die 15b side. However, the portion abuts on the abutting die 15 e, therebypreventing the portion from pivoting. Thus, the portion of theother-side connecting portion 35 on the swing direction side of theouter peripheral die 15 c is retained in parallel with the linearmaterial length direction LL of the other-side connecting portion 35before being bent, thereby forming a step portion 35 b at one positionof the other-side connecting portion 35 in the linear material lengthdirection LL (transfer direction F). Specifically, the step portion 35 bis formed such that a portion of the other-side connecting portion 35 onthe transfer direction downstream side Fb with respect to the stepportion 35 b is situated on the more other wave width direction side Wb(the inner peripheral die 15 b side) as compared to a portion thereof onthe transfer direction upstream side Fa. The support member 15 dsupports the other-side connecting portion 35 to inhibit movement of theother-side connecting portion 35 toward the outer peripheral die 15 cside in the linear material width direction LW on the side opposite tothe swing direction of the outer peripheral die 15 c (here the transferdirection upstream side Fa) with respect to the outer peripheral die 15c. Thus, the support member 15 d serves a function to provide supportsuch that a portion of the other-side connecting portion 35 on the sideopposite to the swing direction of the outer peripheral die 15 c withrespect to the bending position is prevented from rotating due to arotation moment that acts on the other-side connecting portion 35 duringbending. Note that shapes of the inner peripheral die 15 b and the outerperipheral die 15 c are not limited to a columnar shape, and any die ina shape having an arc face at least on a portion contacting theother-side connecting portion 35 may be used preferably. Therefore, forexample, a member in which only a portion contacting the other-sideconnecting portion 35 is formed as an arc face and other portions havean outer face formed of a combination of one or more flat faces maypreferably be the inner peripheral die 15 b or outer peripheral die 15c. Further, shapes of the support members 15 d and the abutting die 15 eare not limited to the above examples, and members with various shapesmay also be used.

Further, the bend tool 15 a, the support member 15 d, and the abuttingdie 15 e are structured to be movable in a direction to approach ordepart from the other-side connecting portion 35 as a process target,here in a direction parallel to the center axes of the inner peripheraldie 15 b and the outer peripheral die 15 c. In a state that the bendtool 15 a, the support member 15 d, and the abutting die 15 e are movedto the other-side connecting portion 35 side, it is structured to insertthe other-side connecting portion 35 to a space between the innerperipheral die 15 b and the outer peripheral die 15 c. In thisembodiment, the bend tool 15 a, the support member 15 d, and theabutting die 15 e are supported by a common base member 15 f. Here,although the support member 15 d and the abutting die 15 e are fixed tothe base member 15 f, the bend tool 15 a is supported rotatably by thebase member 15 f. In this embodiment, the bend tool 15 a, the supportmember 15 d, and the abutting die 15 e are structured to be movabletogether with the base member 15 f in a direction to approach or departfrom the other-side connecting portion 35 as a process target.

6. The First Bending Process and First Bending Unit

Next, the first bending process P5 and the first bending unit 5 will bedescribed. The first bending unit 5 is a unit for performing the firstbending process P5, and bends the one-side connecting portion 33 to forma shape projecting outward in the coil radial direction CR. In thisembodiment, as shown by the shape of the wave conductor 3 at the bendingposition of the first bending process P5 in FIG. 5, the first bendingunit 5 curves the substantially entire one-side connecting portion 33into a substantially arc shape.

As shown in FIG. 21 to FIG. 24, the first bending unit 5 includes afixed die 51 having a fixed shaping face 55 in a substantially arcshape, and a movable die 52 having a movable shaping face 56 in asubstantially arc shape opposing the fixed shaping face 55 andstructured to be swingable about a predetermined swing fulcrum 53. Thetransfer unit 4 (see FIG. 13) feeds the one-side connecting portion 33of the wave conductor 3 to a space between the fixed shaping face 55 andthe movable shaping face 56. Here, the transfer unit 4 is structured totransfer the one-side connecting portion 33 of the wave conductor 3along a transfer line 57 set to substantially match a tangent of atransfer direction upstream side end portion 55 a of the fixed shapingface 55. Then the swing fulcrum 53 of the movable die 52 is arranged onthe movable die 52 side with respect to the transfer line 57 and on thetransfer direction upstream side Fa with respect to the transferdirection upstream side end portion 55 a of the fixed shaping face 55.The fixed die 51 and the movable die 52 press the one-side connectingportion 33 between the fixed shaping face 55 and the movable shapingface 56 into a substantially arc shape curving along the coilcircumferential direction CC (see FIG. 11). In the first bending processP5 and the first bending unit 5, the one-side connecting portion 33 ofthe wave conductor 3 is a target connection part as a target of bending.Further, the wave conductor 3 (linear conductor 3L) including theone-side connecting portion 33 as this target connection part is alinear material. When an apparatus for shaping this linear material intoa substantially arc shape is a linear material shaping apparatus 2, thefirst bending unit 5 and the transfer unit 4 constitute the linearmaterial shaping apparatus 2.

The fixed die 51 is fixed on the base member 59, and has the fixedshaping face 55 in a substantially arc shape. This fixed die 51 isarranged where the tangent of the transfer direction upstream side endportion 55 a of the fixed shaping face 55 substantially matches thetransfer line 57 on which the one-side connecting portion 33 of the waveconductor 3 is transferred. The fixed shaping face 55 is a substantiallyarc shape projecting toward the movable die 52 side (movable shapingface 56). The radius of curvature of the fixed shaping face 55 is setapproximately equal to a radius of an outer peripheral face formed bythe one-side connecting portion 33 on the substantially cylindrical wavewound coil 3C to be formed finally. However, in this embodiment, thefixed shaping face 55 has a step portion 55 b in an extending directionof this face. Therefore, here the radius of curvature of the arc shapedface excluding the step portion 55 b of the fixed shaping face 55 is setas described above. In addition, the step portion 55 b is set such thata portion on the transfer direction downstream side Fb is located moreoutside in the radial direction compared to a portion on the transferdirection upstream side Fa therefrom.

The first bending unit 5 includes a retaining unit 54 retaining the waveconductor 3 in the vicinity of the transfer direction upstream side endportion 55 a of the fixed shaping face 55. In this embodiment, theretaining unit 54 has a recessed groove 54 a formed in a face opposingthe transfer line 57 side, and is formed by a columnar retaining memberfixed integrally to the fixed die 51. Inserting a side portion 31 of thewave conductor 3 in the recessed groove 54 a causes this side portion 31of the wave conductor 3 to be retained so as not to move in the transferdirection F. Therefore, when the one-side connecting portion 33 isprocessed by the first bending unit 5, the wave conductor 3 on thetransfer direction upstream side Fa with respect to the retaining unit54 is prevented from being pulled to the first bending unit 5 side (thetransfer direction downstream side Fb), thereby effectively suppressingthe first bending process P5 from affecting each process on the transferdirection upstream side Fa.

The movable die 52 is structured to be swingable about the swing fulcrum53 supported by the base member 59, and has the movable shaping face 56in a substantially arc shape opposing the fixed shaping face 55. Themovable shaping face 56 has a shape corresponding to the shape of thefixed shaping face 55, specifically, a shape opposing the fixed shapingface 55 with a constant gap between the fixed shaping face 55 and themovable shaping face 56 in a state that the movable die 52 is swung tothe fixed die 51 side, the gap being approximately the same as thelinear material width of the one-side connecting portion 33. Therefore,the movable shaping face 56 is in a substantially arc shape that isrecessed toward the fixed die 51 (fixed shaping face 55) side. Similarlyto the above-described fixed shaping face 55, the radius of curvature ofthe movable shaping face 56 is set approximately equal to the radius ofthe outer peripheral face formed by the one-side connecting portion 33on the substantially cylindrical wave wound coil 3C to be formedfinally. However, in this embodiment, the movable shaping face 56 hasthe step portion 56 b in an extending direction of this face. Therefore,here the radius of curvature of the arc shaped face excluding the stepportion 56 b of the movable shaping face 56 is set as described above.In addition, the step portion 56 b is set such that a portion on thetransfer direction downstream side Fb is located more outside in theradial direction compared to a portion on the transfer directionupstream side Fa therefrom. In this embodiment, there is also providedguide parts 58 on a side face of the movable die 52 opposite to the sidethereof in contact with the base member 59. The guide part 58 has aninclined guide face 58 a inclined toward the side to depart from themovable die 52 toward the fixed die 51 side, as shown in FIG. 24. Thus,when the one-side connecting portion 33 protrude toward the other wavewidth direction side Wb from the fixed shaping face 55, the guide part58 serves a function such that the inclined guide face 58 a contact theone-side connecting portion 33 to push the one-side connecting portion33 toward the fixed shaping face 55 side when the movable die 52 swingstoward the fixed die 51 side.

The swing fulcrum 53 of the movable die 52 is arranged within an area onthe movable die 52 side with respect to the transfer line 57 and on thetransfer direction upstream side Fa with respect to the transferdirection upstream side end portion 55 a of the fixed shaping face 55.In this embodiment, moreover, the swing fulcrum 53 is arranged on thefixed die 51 side with respect to a fixed shaping face downstream sidetangent 55 d that is a tangent on a transfer direction downstream sideend portion 55 c of the fixed shaping face 55. That is, the swingfulcrum 53 here is arranged in an area between the transfer line 57 andthe fixed shaping face downstream side tangent 55 d on the transferdirection upstream side Fa with respect to the transfer directionupstream side end portion 55 a of the fixed shaping face 55. FIG. 23shows this area as a fulcrum arrangement possible area 5A. The swingfulcrum 53 of the movable die 52 is arranged in any position within thisfulcrum arrangement possible area 5A. Arranging the swing fulcrum 53 insuch a fulcrum arrangement possible area 5A allows the movable die 52and the movable shaping face 56 to swing in a positional relationship asshown by (a) to (e) in FIG. 25 with respect to the fixed die 51 and thefixed shaping face 55. As is clear from these drawings, when the swingfulcrum 53 is arranged within the fulcrum arrangement possible area 5A,a distance D5 between the movable shaping face 56 and the fixed shapingface 55 is set to be shortest in the transfer direction upstream sideend portion 55 a. Therefore, as represented by (c) and (d) in FIG. 25,the distance D5 between the movable shaping face 56 and the fixedshaping face 55 just before an end position of the fixed die 51 side inthe swing direction of the movable die 52 is also set to be shortest inthe transfer direction upstream side end portion 55 a. This creates astate that, when the one-side connecting portion 33 is processed by thefirst bending unit 5, an end portion of the one-side connecting portion33 on the transfer direction upstream side Fa is sandwiched between thefixed die 51 and the movable die 52 earlier than a portion on the moretransfer direction downstream side Fb, and hence, is hard to move.Therefore, when the first bending process P5 is performed, the waveconductor 3 on the transfer direction upstream side Fa with respect tothe first bending unit 5 is prevented from being pulled to the firstbending unit 5 side (the transfer direction downstream side Fb), therebyeffectively suppressing the first bending process P5 from affecting eachprocess on the transfer direction upstream side Fa. Further, when theswing fulcrum 53 is arranged within such a fulcrum arrangement possiblearea 5A, movement of the movable shaping face 56 in a direction to slideon the surface of the one-side connecting portion 33 is suppressed to bevery small, thereby allowing suppressing scratching or the like on aninsulating film formed on the surface of the one-side connecting portion33.

In the first bending process P5, as shown in (a) to (e) of FIG. 25, themovable die 52 swings to the fixed die 51 side so that the one-sideconnecting portion 33 of the wave conductor 3 fed to the space betweenthe fixed shaping face 55 and the movable shaping face 56 is pressedbetween the fixed shaping face 55 and the movable shaping face 56, andis curve shaped into a substantially arc shape along the shape of thegap between the fixed shaping face 55 and the movable shaping face 56.At this point, the fixed shaping face 55 and the movable shaping face 56each have the step portions 55 b, 56 b as described above. Therefore, astep portion 33 a as shown in FIG. 5 is formed in the one-sideconnecting portion 33 conforming the shape of these step portions 55 b,56 b.

The first bending unit 5 is movable in a direction to approach or departfrom the one-side connecting portion 33 of the wave conductor 3, herethe wave width direction W, and is structured to insert the one-sideconnecting portion 33 to the space between the fixed die 51 and themovable die 52 in a state that the first bending unit 5 is moved to theone-side connecting portion 33 side. In this embodiment, as shown inFIG. 22, the base member 59 supporting the parts of the first bendingunit 5 is relatively movable in the wave width direction W with respectto a support frame 77 supporting the transfer unit 4 and the bobbin 71.Thus, the fixed die 51, the movable die 52, and the retaining unit 54constituting the first bending unit 5 are integrally movable in the wavewidth direction W. The first bending unit 5 is structured to move in adirection to depart from the wave conductor 3 (the one wave widthdirection side Wa) in synchronization with intermittent transfer of thewave conductor 3 by the transfer unit 4 during this intermittenttransfer, and move in a direction to approach the wave conductor 3 (theother wave width direction side Wb) when the wave conductor 3 is stoppedafter the intermittent transfer.

Further, in this embodiment, in the first bending process P5, theone-side connecting portion 33 is shaped into a different shape in eachwinding. Specifically, as described above, the one-side connectingportion 33 is shaped such that the position of the step portion 33 a inthe linear material length direction LL (transfer direction F) of theone-side connecting portion 33 is different between the first windingone-side connecting portions 33F constituting the first winding section3 f and the second winding one-side connecting portions 33S constitutingthe second winding section 3 s. This is for plurally arranging theone-side connecting portions 33 of the wave conductor 3 in differentwindings in parallel appropriately in the coil radial direction CR, asshown in FIG. 10 and FIG. 11. Accordingly, although omitted fromillustration, the first bending unit 5 is structured including aplurality of shaping dies for bending the one-side connecting portions33 in different shapes, in a manner interchangeable in each winding.Specifically, there are provided a plurality of couples of fixed dies 51and movable dies 52, which are structured to be interchangeable in eachwinding. For example, the base member 59 may be supported to berotatable about an axis orthogonal to the transfer surface of the waveconductor 3, and that the first bending unit 5 including the fixed die51 and the movable die 52 be provided on each of plural faces of thisbase member 59.

FIG. 26A shows a state prior to bending in the first bending process P5and a movement trace of the bobbin 71 during bending, and FIG. 26B showsa state after bending in the first bending process P5. As shown in FIG.26, in the first bending process P5, bending is performed such that aportion of the wave conductor 3 on the transfer direction downstreamside Fb pivots about the bending position in the first bending processP5. Here, the actually bent position of the one-side connecting portion33 that is processed in the first bending process P5 corresponds to thebending position in the first bending process P5. In this embodiment, asdescribed above, as the one-side connecting portion 33 is pressedbetween the fixed shaping face 55 and the movable shaping face 56, partsof the one-side connecting portion 33 are curved gradually and finallyformed in a substantially arc shape. At this time, the bending positionof the first bending process P5 moves in the linear material lengthdirection LL of the one-side connecting portion 33 depending on a stateof abutment of the fixed shaping face 55 and the movable shaping face 56on the one-side connecting portion 33. In the first bending process P5,the portion of the wave conductor 3 on the transfer direction downstreamside Fb from the bending position pivots inward in the coil radialdirection CR about the bending position of the first bending process P5that moves in this manner.

The wave conductor 3 is wound and retained on the bobbin 71 on thetransfer direction downstream side Fb from the bending position in thefirst bending process P5. Specifically, side portions 31 in part on thetransfer direction downstream side Fb from the bending position in thefirst bending process P5 are inserted and retained in insertion grooves75 provided in an outer peripheral face 71C of the bobbin 71.Accordingly, when performing the first bending process P5, a center axis71A of the bobbin 71 is moved according to the movement trace of theportion of the wave conductor 3 wound on such a bobbin 71. FIG. 26Ashows an ideal movement trace of the center axis 71A of such a bobbin 71as a first ideal movement trace E1 by a dot and dash line. When thecenter axis 71A of the bobbin 71 is moved along this first idealmovement trace E1, the first bending process P5 can be performed in astate that the wave conductor 3 on the transfer direction downstreamside Fb from the bending position of the first bending process P5 barelydeforms elastically. However, in this embodiment, to simplify the bobbinmovement unit 73, the center axis 71A of the bobbin 71 is moved along astraight movement trace E4 that is a linear movement trace. Thisstraight movement trace E4 is a linear trace set to approximate thefirst ideal movement trace E1, and is set herein as a linear traceconnecting a start point and an end point of the first ideal movementtrace E1 in a substantially arc shape. The wave conductor 3 has arelatively high elasticity, and a displacement of the straight movementtrace E4 from the first ideal movement trace E1 falls within the elasticdeformation region of the wave conductor 3 on the transfer directiondownstream side Fb from the bending position of the first bendingprocess P5. Therefore, the wave conductor 3 would not be deformedplastically when the center axis 71A of the bobbin 71 is moved alongsuch a straight movement trace E4.

7. The Second Bending Process and Second Bending Unit, and the WindingProcess

Next, the second bending process P6 and the second bending unit 6 willbe described. The second bending unit 6 is a unit for performing thesecond bending process P6, and bends the other-side connecting portion35 so as to project outward in the coil radial direction CR. In thisembodiment, as shown by the shape of the wave conductor 3 at the bendingposition in the second bending process P6 in FIG. 6, the second bendingunit 6 bends the other-side connecting portion 35 at one position so asto shape the other-side connecting portion 35 into a substantially Vshape. For the second bending process P6 and the second bending unit 6,the other-side connecting portion 35 of the wave conductor 3 is a targetconnecting portion as a target of bending. Further, the second bendingprocess P6 to bend and shape the other-side connecting portion 35 asthis target connecting portion into a substantially V shape is aconnecting portion bending process, and the second bending unit 6 is aconnecting portion bending unit for this process.

As shown in FIG. 21, FIG. 22, and FIG. 27, in this embodiment, thesecond bending unit 6 includes a bend tool 61 having an inner peripheraldie 62 (inner peripheral pin) and an outer peripheral die 63 (outerperipheral pin), which are both columnar and arranged to face eachother, the outer peripheral die 63 being swingable about the center axisof the inner peripheral die 62. In the second bending process P6, bendshaping is performed such that the other-side connecting portion 35 isbent at one position along the inner peripheral die 62 to shape aportion of the other-side connecting portion 35 in the linear materiallength direction LL into a substantially arc shape, thereby turning theentire other-side connecting portion 35 into a substantially V shape. Atthis point, the outer peripheral die 63 arranged to face the innerperipheral die 62 across the other-side connecting portion 35 is swungabout the center axis of the inner peripheral die 62 to thereby bend theother-side connecting portion 35. In this embodiment, the outerperipheral die 63 swings toward the transfer direction upstream side Fa(the other side in the linear material length direction LL). Further,the second bending unit 6 includes a support member 64 for supporting aportion of the other-side connecting portion 35 on the transferdirection downstream side Fb (one side in the linear material lengthdirection LL) with respect to the outer peripheral die 63 to inhibitmovement of the portion toward at least the outer peripheral die 63 sidein the linear material width direction LW. That is, this support member64 is arranged to support a side opposite to the swing direction of theouter peripheral die 63 in the linear material length direction LL, thatis, the outer peripheral die 63 side in the linear material widthdirection LW. Here, the support member 64 is formed of a columnar member(support pin) arranged to contact the other-side connecting portion 35.

As shown in FIG. 27, in the second bending process P6, by swinging thebend tool 61 in a state that the other-side connecting portion 35 isinserted to a space between the inner peripheral die 62 and the outerperipheral die 63, the outer peripheral die 63 swings about the centeraxis of the inner peripheral die 62, thereby bending the other-sideconnecting portion 35 at one position along the outer peripheral face ofthe inner peripheral die 62. Thus, a portion of the other-sideconnecting portion 35 in the linear material length direction LL is bentand shaped into a substantially arc shape. On the transfer directiondownstream side Fb opposite to the swing direction of the outerperipheral die 63 with respect to the outer peripheral die 63, thesupport member 64 abuts on a side face of the other-side connectingportion 35 on the outer peripheral die 63 side, so that the other-sideconnecting portion 35 does not move toward the outer peripheral die 63side in the linear material width direction LW. Thus, the supportmembers 64 serves a function to provide support such that a portion ofthe other-side connecting portion 35 on the transfer directiondownstream side Fb with respect to the bending position is preventedfrom rotating due to a rotation moment that acts on the other-sideconnecting portion 35 during bending. Note that shapes of the innerperipheral die 62 and the outer peripheral die 63 are not limited to acolumnar shape, and any die in a shape having an arc face at least on aportion contacting the other-side connecting portion 35 may be usedpreferably. Therefore, for example, a member in which only a portioncontacting the other-side connecting portion 35 is formed as an arc faceand other portions have an outer face formed of a combination of one ormore flat faces may preferably be used as the inner peripheral die 62 orouter peripheral die 63. Further, the support member 64 is not limitedto a columnar shape, and a member with a various shape such as arectangular parallelepiped shape may also be used.

Further, the bend tool 61 and the support member 64 are structured to bemovable in a direction to approach or depart from the other-sideconnecting portion 35 as a process target, here in a direction parallelto the center axes of the inner peripheral die 62 and the outerperipheral die 63 (here the wave width direction W). In a state that thebend tool 61 and the support member 64 are moved to the other-sideconnecting portion 35 side, it is structured that the other-sideconnecting portion 35 is inserted to the space between the innerperipheral die 62 and the outer peripheral die 63, and the supportmember 64 contacts the other-side connecting portion 35. In thisembodiment, as shown in FIG. 21 and FIG. 22, the bend tool 61 and thesupport member 64 are supported by a common base member 65. In thisembodiment, the base member 65 is supported by a second bending unitsupport shaft 78 supported by the bobbin 71. Here, although the supportmember 64 is fixed to the base member 65, the bend tool 61 is supportedrotatably by the base member 65. In this embodiment, the bend tool 61and the support member 64 are structured to be movable together with thebase member 65 in a direction to approach or depart from the other-sideconnecting portion 35 as a process target, specifically the wave widthdirection W. In this embodiment, the base member 65 is structured to bemovable in an axial direction of the second bending unit support shaft78 along the second bending unit support shaft 78. Then the secondbending unit 6 is structured to move in a direction to depart from thewave conductor 3 (the other wave width direction side Wb) when thebobbin 71 moves as shown in FIG. 26A by bending in the first bendingprocess P5 in synchronization with the first bending process P5, andmove in a direction to approach the wave conductor 3 (the one wave widthdirection side Wa) after the first bending process P5 is finished. Sincethe second bending process P6 is performed in synchronization withintermittent transfer in the transfer process Pf as will be describedlater, this intermittent transfer is performed in a state that thesecond bending unit 6 is moved in the direction to approach the waveconductor 3. Since the base member 65 of the second bending unit 6 issupported on the bobbin 71 via the second bending unit support shaft 78,the second bending unit 6 moves together with the bobbin 71 in anysituation.

As shown in FIG. 9 to FIG. 12, in this embodiment, the wave conductor 3is wound for two windings on the bobbin 71 (see FIG. 21). Accordingly,in the second bending process P6, the other-side connecting portion 35is shaped into a different shape in each winding. Specifically, asdescribed above, the bent portion 35 c bent into a substantially arcshape is shaped to have a different radius of curvature in the firstwinding other-side connecting portions 35F constituting the firstwinding section 3 f and the second winding other-side connectingportions 35S constituting the second winding section 3 s. This is forplurally arranging the other-side connecting portions 35 of the waveconductor 3 in different windings in parallel appropriately in the coilradial direction CR, as shown in FIG. 12 and so on. Accordingly, thesecond bending unit 6 is structured including shaping dies forperforming the second bending process P6 on the other-side connectingportion 35, in a manner interchangeable in each winding. Specifically,there are provided a plurality of couples of bend tools 61 and supportmembers 64, which are structured to be interchangeable in each winding.For example, although omitted from illustration, it is preferable thattwo couples of bend tools 61 and support members 64 be provided on thebase member 65, and the different couples of bend tools 61 and supportmembers 64 move to the position where the other-side connecting portion35 is bent by rotating the base member 65 about the second bending unitsupport shaft 78.

FIG. 28 shows structures of the bend tool 61 and the support member 64as a shaping die for performing the second bending process P6 on thesecond winding other-side connecting portion 35S. The bend tool 61 andthe support member 64 are different in arrangement of the innerperipheral die 62, the outer peripheral die 63, and the support member64 from the shaping die for performing the second bending process P6 onthe first winding other-side connecting portion 35F shown in FIG. 27.That is, in the bend tool 61 shown in FIG. 28, a gap between the innerperipheral die 62 and the outer peripheral die 63 is twice as wide asthat in the bend tool 61 shown in FIG. 27 such that two other-sideconnecting portions 35 can be inserted to the space between the innerperipheral die 62 and the outer peripheral die 63. Further, the supportmember 64 is arranged at a position in contact with a side face on theouter peripheral die 63 side of the second winding other-side connectingportion 35S arranged outside in the coil radial direction CR adjacent tothe first winding other-side connecting portion 35F. When bending thesecond winding other-side connecting portion 35S in the second bendingprocess P6, the outer peripheral die 63 arranged to face the innerperipheral die 62 across the other-side connecting portions 35 of twowindings (the first winding other-side connecting portion 35F and thesecond winding other-side connecting portion 35S) is swung about thecenter axis of the inner peripheral die 62, so as to bend the secondwinding other-side connecting portion 35S at one position along thefirst winding other-side connecting portion 35F that is already bent.Thus, the first winding other-side connecting portion 35F and the secondwinding other-side connecting portion 35S are arranged in parallelappropriately in the coil radial direction CR.

As shown in FIG. 29, in this embodiment, when the other-side connectingportion 35 is bent and shaped in the second bending process P6, thewinding process P7 in which the bobbin 71 is rotated and moved to windthe wave conductor 3 on the bobbin 71 is performed in synchronizationwith the second bending process P6. At this point, intermittent transferof the wave conductor 3 in the transfer process Pf is also performed insynchronization therewith. FIG. 29A shows a state prior to bending inthe second bending process P6 and a movement trace of the bobbin 71during bending, and FIG. 29B shows a state after bending in the secondbending process P6 as well as a movement trace of the bobbin 71accompanying the second bending process P6 and intermittent transfer ofthe transfer process Pf. As shown in FIG. 29, in the second bendingprocess P6, the other-side connecting portion 35 is processed to bend byswinging the outer peripheral die 63 arranged facing the innerperipheral die 62 across the other-side connecting portion 35 toward thetransfer direction upstream side Fa about the center axis of the innerperipheral die 62. Thus, in the second bending process P6, when seenwith reference to the inner peripheral die 62 of the second bending unit6, a portion of the other-side connecting portion 35 on the transferdirection upstream side Fa pivots inward in the coil radial direction CRabout this inner peripheral die 62. However, in this embodiment, by thebobbin 71 rotating and moving in synchronization with the second bendingprocess P6 as shown in FIG. 29A, a portion of the other-side connectingportion 35 on the transfer direction downstream side Fb moves to pivotinward in the coil radial direction CR about the inner peripheral die 62when seen with reference to the stationary first bending unit 5.

Now, the wave conductor 3 is wound and retained on the bobbin 71 on thetransfer direction downstream side Fb with respect to the bendingposition of the second bending process P6 (one side in the linearmaterial length direction LL of the other-side connecting portion 35).Specifically, the side portions 31 on the transfer direction downstreamside Fb from the bending position of the second bending process P6 areinserted and retained in the insertion grooves 75 provided in the outerperipheral face 71C of the bobbin 71. Then by rotating and moving thebobbin 71 in synchronization with bending of the other-side connectingportion 35 in the second bending process P6, the side portion 31adjacent on the transfer direction upstream side Fa with respect to thebending position of the second bending process P6 (the other side in thelinear material length direction LL of the other-side connecting portion35) is inserted and retained in the insertion groove 75 of the bobbin71. Thus, the winding process P7 to wind the wave conductor 3 on thebobbin 71 is performed.

In FIG. 29A, an ideal movement trace of the center axis 71A of thebobbin 71 when bending the other-side connecting portion 35 in thesecond bending process P6 and the winding process P7 is shown as asecond ideal movement trace E2 by a dot and dash line. The second idealmovement trace E2 is a trace when the center axis 71A of the bobbin 71is moved so that the position of the wave conductor 3 on the transferdirection upstream side Fa with respect to the bending position of thesecond bending process P6 does not change when performing the secondbending process P6. This second ideal movement trace E2 is in an arcshape having a center in the vicinity of the center axis of the innerperipheral die 62. When the center axis 71A of the bobbin 71 is movedalong this second ideal movement trace E2, the second bending process P6can be performed in a state that the wave conductor 3 on the transferdirection upstream side Fb from the bending position of the of thesecond bending process P6 barely deforms elastically. Further, rotationof the bobbin 71 is also performed in the second bending process P6. Theangle of rotation of the bobbin 71 at this time is almost equal to thebending angle of the other-side connecting portion 35 in the secondbending process P6. By such rotation of the bobbin 71, as shown in FIG.29A and FIG. 29B, the side portion 31 adjacent on the transfer directionupstream side Fa to the bending position of the second bending processP6 is inserted and retained in the insertion groove 75 of the bobbin 71while the side portions 31 on the transfer direction downstream side Fbfrom the bending position of the second bending process P6 are retainedin the insertion grooves 75 of the bobbin 71. Here, since the one-sideconnecting portion 33 adjacent to the other-side connecting portion 35of the process target on the transfer direction upstream side Fa is in astate of being already curve processed in the first bending process P5,the two side portions 31 adjacent to the bending position of the secondbending process P6 on the transfer direction upstream side Fa areinserted and retained in the insertion grooves 75 of the bobbin 71almost simultaneously by performing the second bending process P6.

Further, in this embodiment, intermittent transfer of the wave conductor3 in the transfer process Pf is performed in synchronization with thesecond bending process P6 and the winding process P7. Accordingly,movement of the bobbin 71 corresponding to the amount of movement of thewave conductor 3 by this intermittent transfer is also performed insynchronization with this intermittent transfer. Here, the bobbin 71 ismoved so that an amount of movement in a direction parallel to thetransfer direction of the wave conductor 3 prior to bending in the firstbending process P5 corresponds to the amount of transfer by thisintermittent transfer. In FIG. 29B, an ideal movement trace of thecenter axis 71A of the bobbin 71 when the bobbin 71 is movedcorresponding to this intermittent transfer is shown as an intermittenttransfer trace E3 by a chain line. This intermittent transfer trace E3is a linear trace in parallel with the transfer direction of the waveconductor 3 prior to bending in the first bending process P5. When thecenter axis 71A of the bobbin 71 is moved along this intermittenttransfer trace E3, intermittent transfer of the wave conductor 3 in thetransfer process Pf can be performed with the wave conductor 3 in thestate that the wave conductor 3 barely deforms elastically.

In this embodiment, the second bending process P6, the winding processP7, and intermittent transfer of the wave conductor 3 in the transferprocess Pf are performed in synchronization. An ideal movement trace ofcenter axis 71A of the bobbin 71 when performing these processes at thesame time is a trace combining the second ideal movement trace E2 andthe intermittent transfer trace E3 described above. However, in thisembodiment, to simplify the bobbin movement unit 73, the center axis 71Aof the bobbin 71 is moved along a straight movement trace E4 that is alinear movement trace. This straight movement trace E4 is a linear traceset to approximate the trace combining the second ideal movement traceE2 and the intermittent transfer trace E3, and is set as a linear traceconnecting a start point of the second ideal movement trace E2 and anend point of the intermittent transfer trace E3. This trace matches thestraight movement trace E4 approximating to the first ideal movementtrace E1 when performing the first bending process P5. The waveconductor 3 has a relatively high elasticity, and a displacement of thestraight movement trace E4 from the trace combining the second idealmovement trace E2 and the intermittent transfer trace E3 falls withinthe elastic deformation region of the wave conductor 3 on the transferdirection upstream side Fa from the bending position of the secondbending process P6. Therefore, the wave conductor 3 would not bedeformed plastically when the center axis 71A of the bobbin 71 is movedalong such a straight movement trace E4.

Here, in this embodiment, two windings of the wave conductor 3 are woundon the bobbin 71, and the first bending process P5 and the secondbending process P6 are performed on each of the one-side connectingportions 33 and the other-side connecting portions 35 constituting thesecond winding section 3 s of the wave conductor 3, similarly to thefirst winding section 3 f. FIG. 30 shows states of the wave conductor 3and movement traces of the bobbin 71 when performing the first bendingprocess P5 for the second winding section 3 s, similarly to FIG. 26related to the first winding section 3 f. As shown in FIG. 30A, in thefirst bending process P5, also on the second winding one-side connectingportions 33S constituting the second winding section 3 s, bending isperformed such that a portion of the wave conductor 3 on the transferdirection downstream side Fb pivots about the bending position of thefirst bending process P5, similarly to the first winding one-sideconnecting portions 33F constituting the first winding section 3 f. Atthis time, the wave conductor 3 has the side portions 31 on the transferdirection downstream side Fb from the bending position of the secondbending process P6 inserted and retained in the insertion grooves 75 ofthe bobbin 71. When performing the first bending process P5, asdescribed above, the center axis 71A of the bobbin 71 is moved along thestraight movement trace E4 set approximating to the first ideal movementtrace E1. Thus, as shown in FIG. 30B, the second winding other-sideconnecting portions 35S constituting the second winding section 3 s arearranged outside in the coil radial direction CR adjacent to the firstwinding other-side connecting portions 35F constituting the firstwinding section 3 f. At this time, the first winding other-sideconnecting portion 35F has a bent portion 35 c that has been bent andshaped already in the second bending process P6, but the second windingother-side connecting portion 35S has no bent portion 35 c and is stillin a substantially straight shape when seen in the direction of thebobbin axis.

FIG. 31 shows states of the wave conductor 3 and movement traces of thebobbin 71 when performing the second bending process P6, the windingprocess P7, and intermittent transfer in the transfer process Pf for thesecond winding section 3 s in synchronization, similarly to FIG. 29related to the first winding section 3 f. As shown in FIG. 31, in thesecond bending process P6 for the second winding section 3 s, the outerperipheral die 63 is swung toward the transfer direction upstream sideFa about the center axis of the inner peripheral die 62 in a state thatthe first winding other-side connecting portion 35F which is alreadybent and the substantially straight second winding other-side connectingportion 35S are sandwiched between the inner peripheral die 62 and theouter peripheral die 63. Thus, the second winding other-side connectingportion 35S is bent at one position along the first winding other-sideconnecting portion 35F which has been already bent. By rotating andmoving the bobbin 71 in synchronization with this second bending processP6, two side portions 31 of the second winding section 3 s adjacent onthe transfer direction upstream side Fa to the bending position of thesecond bending process P6 are inserted and retained in insertion grooves75 of the bobbin 71. In this manner, the winding process P7 to wind thewave conductor 3 on the bobbin 71 is performed. By this winding processP7 of the second winding section 3 s, two windings of the wave conductor3 are wound on the bobbin 71, and the two side portions 31 are arrangedin the coil radial direction CR in the insertion grooves 75 of thebobbin 71.

Here, as shown in FIG. 29 to FIG. 31, the bobbin 71 is arranged lowerthan the first bending unit 5. The second bending unit 6 is arranged ata position separated by one or more wave cycles PT of the wave conductor3 on the transfer direction downstream side Fb, with respect to thefirst bending unit 5 along the transfer direction F of the waveconductor 3, which is in a direction gradually curving downward on thetransfer direction downstream side Fb with respect to the bendingposition of the first bending unit 5. Specifically, the second bendingunit 6 is arranged at a position of 1.5 pitch (1.5 wave cycle) on thetransfer direction downstream side Fb with respect to the first bendingunit 5. Further, in this embodiment, the second bending unit 6 islocated on the transfer direction upstream side Fa with respect to abottom end position 71L of the bobbin 71 along the transfer direction Fof the wave conductor 3.

8. The Winding Process and Winding Unit

Next, the winding process P7 and the winding unit 7 will be described.The winding unit 7 is a unit for performing the winding process P7 so asto wind on the bobbin 71 the wave conductor 3 that has been bent in thefirst bending process P5 and the second bending process P6 describedabove. As described above, the bobbin 71 is rotated and moved insynchronization with the first bending process P5, the second bendingprocess P6, and the transfer process Pf (see FIG. 26 and FIG. 29 to FIG.31). Accordingly, in this embodiment, the winding unit 7 has the bobbin71 to wind the wave conductor 3 that has been bent in the first bendingprocess P5 and the second bending process P6, a bobbin rotation unit 72capable of rotating the bobbin 71 about the center axis 71A, and abobbin movement unit 73 capable of moving the center axis 71A of thebobbin 71 along a predetermined movement trace, as shown in FIG. 21 andFIG. 22. In this embodiment, the bobbin 71 is structured by coupling twodisc members to have a positional relationship of being concentric andin parallel with each other.

The bobbin rotation unit 72 is structured having a bobbin support shaft79 rotatably supporting the bobbin 71 and a not-shown rotation driveunit, such as a stepping motor, for rotating the bobbin 71 by apredetermined angle in synchronization with the first bending process P5and the second bending process P6. In addition, the center axis of thebobbin support shaft 79 is the center axis 71A of the bobbin 71. Thebobbin support shaft 79 is supported on a support frame 77. Here, thebobbin support shaft 79 is supported on the support frame 77 to be inparallel with the wave width direction W. The bobbin movement unit 73 inthis embodiment is structured as a unit to enable movement of the centeraxis 71A of the bobbin 71 along the straight movement trace E4.Accordingly, the bobbin movement unit 73 is structured having a bobbinmovement groove 73 a provided on the support frame 77 and a not-showndirect drive unit, such as a unit combining a stepping motor and a ballscrew, for moving the bobbin support shaft 79 along this bobbin movementgroove 73 a. The bobbin movement groove 73 a is provided in parallelwith the above-described straight movement trace E4. As described above,the structure to move the center axis 71A of the bobbin 71 along thestraight movement trace E4 in both the first bending process P5 and thesecond bending unit 6 allows forming the bobbin movement groove 73 aprovided on the support frame 77 in a linear shape, thereby simplifyingthe bobbin movement unit 73.

As shown in FIG. 32, on the outer peripheral face 71C of the bobbin 71,a plurality of side portion retaining units 74 in which side portions 31of the wave conductor 3 are retained are provided along acircumferential direction of the bobbin 71. Each side portion retainingunit 74 has an insertion groove 75 that is formed on an outer peripheralface 71C of the bobbin 71 and in which the side portion 31 of the waveconductor 3 is inserted, and a lock member 76 to lock the side portion31 inserted in the insertion groove 75. A plurality (eight in thisembodiment) of insertion grooves 75 are provided at regular intervalsalong the circumferential direction on the outer peripheral face 71C ofthe bobbin 71. For each insertion groove 75, an inclined guide face 75 ais formed on the transfer direction downstream side Fb (windingdirection side of the bobbin 71) of this groove. This inclined guideface 75 a is an inclined face for guiding the side portion 31 tofacilitate insertion in the insertion groove 75 in the winding processP7 performed in synchronization with the second bending process P6. Notethat in this embodiment, the insertion grooves 75 are formed on theouter peripheral face 71C of each of the two disc members forming thebobbin 71.

In this embodiment, the lock member 76 presses and locks the sideportion 31 inserted in the guide groove 75 from the inclined guide face75 a side (the transfer direction downstream side Fb). The face on aside of the insertion groove 75 where the inclined guide face 75 a isnot provided is in parallel with the radial direction of the bobbin 71,and thus the lock member 76 sandwiches and locks the side portion 31with this face. Here, there are provided first lock members 76F forlocking the side portions 31 constituting the first winding section 3 fand second lock members 76S for locking the side portions 31constituting the second winding section 3 s. FIG. 32A shows a structureof the first lock member 76F, and FIG. 32B shows a structure of thesecond lock member 76S. As shown in FIG. 33, the first lock members 76Fand the second lock members 76S are arranged in parallel in the axialdirection of the bobbin 71. Note that in this embodiment, two couples offirst lock members 76F and second lock members 76S are arranged in theaxial direction of the bobbin 71, each couple being structured to lockeach side portion 31 at two positions in the linear material lengthdirection LL thereof. Each first lock member 76F has a pressing surfacearranged inward in the bobbin radial direction (inward in the coilradial direction CR) in the insertion groove 75 at a height matching theheight of the side portions 31 of the first winding section 3 f, and isstructured to press only the side portions 31 of the first windingsection 3 f by this pressing surface. Each second lock member 76S has apressing surface arranged outward in the bobbin radial direction(outward in the coil radial direction CR) in the insertion groove 75 ata height matching the height of the side portions 31 of the secondwinding section 3 s, and is structured to press only the side portions31 of the second winding section 3 s by this pressing surface. Eachsecond lock member 76S also has a retaining protrusion 76 a forpreventing the side portions 31 of the second winding section 3 s frombeing pulled off outward in the bobbin radial direction.

As shown in FIG. 32, each lock member 76 (each of the first lock members76F and the second lock members 76S) includes a biasing member 76 b anda lock release unit 76 c. Further, each lock member 76 is supported onthe bobbin 71 swingably about a predetermined support shaft 76 d. Thebiasing unit 76 b biases each lock member 76 in a locking direction, andformed in this embodiment using an elastic member (helical torsionspring in the illustrated example). Here, the locking direction refersto a direction in which the lock member 76 presses the side portion 31.The lock release unit 76 c moves (here swings) each lock member 76 in alock release direction against the biasing force of the biasing unit 76b. In this embodiment, the lock release unit 76 c is structured having alock release shaft performing an operation to press each lock member 76in a direction to swing in the lock release direction and a not-showndrive mechanism, such as an air cylinder, that drives the lock releaseshaft in an axial direction.

As described above, the winding process P7 is performed insynchronization with the second bending process P6. That is, the secondbending process P6 is performed in a state that the side portions 31 onthe transfer direction downstream side Fb from the bending position ofthe second bending process P6 are retained in the side portion retainingunits 74 provided on the bobbin 71. Then by rotating and moving thebobbin 71 in synchronization with bending of the other-side connectingportions 35 in the second bending process P6, two side portions 31adjacent to the transfer direction upstream side Fa with respect to thebending position in the second bending process P6 are inserted andretained in the side portion retaining units 74 of the bobbin 71, andthe winding process P7 is performed. Therefore, each side portionretaining unit 74 retains the side portion 31 by moving the lock member76 in the lock release direction when the side portion 31 is inserted inthe insertion groove 75, and moving the lock member 76 in the lockingdirection after the side portion 31 is inserted in the insertion groove75. Here, the side portion retaining units 74 each include two members,the first lock member 76F and the second lock member 76S. Accordingly,the side portion retaining units 74 place both the first lock members76F and the second lock members 76S into a lock release state when theside portions 31 of the first winding section 3 f are inserted in theinsertion grooves 75, and place only the first lock members 76F into alock state after the side portions 31 of the first winding section 3 fare inserted in the insertion grooves 75. Thereafter, until the sideportions 31 of the second winding section 3 s are inserted in the guidegrooves 75, the second lock members 76S are kept in the lock releasestate, and after the side portions 31 of the second winding section 3 sare inserted in the insertion grooves 75, the second lock members 76Sare placed into the lock state. Thus, when the side portions 31 of thesecond winding section 3 s are inserted in the insertion grooves 75, theside portions 31 of the first winding section 3 f that have been alreadyinserted can be restricted from jumping out of the insertion grooves 75.

9. The Shape of the Wave Wound Coil

By performing the processes of the coil manufacturing method as has beendescribed above on the entire wave conductor 3, the wave wound coil 3Cformed by shaping the wave conductor 3 into a substantially cylindricalshape is wound on the bobbin 71. Then by removing the bobbin 71, thewave wound coil 3C having a predetermined shape as shown in FIG. 11 andFIG. 34 is obtained. This wave wound coil 3C is made by shaping thelinear conductor 3L with a cross-sectional shape having directionality(here a rectangular cross-sectional shape) into a substantiallyrectangular waveform and then shaping the linear conductor 3L into asubstantially cylindrical shape. Further, this wave wound coil 3C hasthe plurality of straight side portions 31 extending in the coil axisdirection, the one-side connecting portions 33 sequentially connectingevery other pair of side portions 31 adjacent to each other in the coilcircumferential direction CC at ends on the one axial direction side(one wave width direction side Wa), and the other-side connectingportions 35 sequentially connecting pairs of side portions 31 adjacentto each other in the coil circumferential direction CC that are notconnected by the one-side connecting portions 33 at ends on the otheraxial direction side (the other wave width direction side Wb).

Then by performing the first bending process P5 and the second bendingprocess P6 described above, either one side in the linear materiallength direction LL of each of the one-side connecting portions 33 andthe other-side connecting portions 35 is bent in the coil radialdirection CR, and is thereby formed to project outward in the coilradial direction CR. In other words, the one-side connecting portions 33and the other-side connecting portions 35 are formed in a curved shapeor bent shape along the coil circumferential direction CC of the wavewound coil 3C in a substantially cylindrical shape. Accordingly, asshown in FIG. 34, the plurality of side portions 31 of the waveconductor 3 are arranged along the coil circumferential direction CC ofthe substantially cylindrical wave wound coil 3C to be formed finally,and the directions of cross-sectional shapes of the side portions 31 arein a constant direction with respect to the coil radial direction CR.Here, the state that the cross-sectional direction of each side portion31 is in a constant direction with respect to the coil radial directionCR is a state that all of the plurality of side portions 31 of the wavewound coil 3C arranged in the coil circumferential direction CC arealigned in the same direction with respect to the coil radial directionCR. In other words, it is equivalent to a state that cross sections ofthe plurality of side portions 31 having directionality are arrangedradially with the center axis of the wave wound coil 3C serving as thecenter. In this embodiment, regarding the direction of thecross-sectional shapes of the side portions 31, a directionsubstantially orthogonal to the face of the substantially flat waveconductor 3 before being formed into a substantially cylindrical shapeis taken as a reference direction, and arrangement is made such that thereference direction matches a direction along the coil radial directionCR. More specifically, arrangement is made such that among four sidesconstituting an outer edge of the rectangular cross section of each sideportion 31, two sides in parallel with each other are in a directionalong the coil radial direction CR, that is, a direction substantiallyin parallel with the coil radial direction CR, and the remaining twosides are in a direction substantially orthogonal to the coil radialdirection CR. As described above, when the wave wound coil 3C is anarmature coil for rotary electrical machine, positions and directions ofcross-sectional shapes of the side portions 31 after bending in thefirst bending process P5 and the second bending process P6 aredetermined on the basis of a state that each side portion 31 is insertedin a predetermined slot of an armature core. The arrangement anddirections of cross-sectional shapes of the side portions 31 as shown inFIG. 34 are suitable for insertion in a plurality of slots arranged atpredetermined intervals in a circumferential direction on an innerperipheral face of a cylindrical armature core, particularly, ingroove-shaped slots extending in an axial direction of the armature coreand arranged radially along a radial direction of the armature core.

In this wave wound coil 3C, the one-side connecting portion 33 isarc-shaped connecting portion that is substantially entirely shaped intoa substantially arc shape so as to project outward in the coil radialdirection CR. On the other hand, the other-side connecting portion 35 isV-shaped connecting portion bent at one position and shaped in asubstantially V shape so as to project outward in the coil radialdirection CR. In each other-side connecting portion 35, only a portionin the linear material length direction LL has the bent portion 35 cshaped into a substantially arc shape. The entire connecting portion isin a substantially V shape having straight portions which extendlinearly on both sides of this bent portion 35 c. The straight portionshave a direction substantially orthogonal to the coil radial directionCR being the linear material length direction LL. Further, on this wavewound coil 3C, portions on the other wave width direction side Wb of thewave conductor 3 including the other-side connecting portions 35 formthe other-side end face forming regions 37 which are bent inward in thecoil radial direction CR. In this embodiment, the other-side end faceforming regions 37 are bent inward in the coil radial direction CR to besubstantially in parallel with a plane orthogonal to the coil axisdirection (wave width direction W). Then ends of such other-side endface forming regions 37 located inside of the coil radial direction CRare formed by the other-side connecting portions 35. That is, theother-side connecting portions 35 are located more inward in the coilradial direction CR as compared to the one-side connecting portions 33,and accordingly, the other-side connecting portions 35 have a shorterlinear material length as compared to that of the one-side connectingportions 33. In the structure of this embodiment, the other-sideconnecting portions 35 thus located inside in the coil radial directionCR and having shorter linear material lengths are formed in V-shapeconnecting portions, which can be easily processed and requires aprocessing unit (second bending unit 6) which can be easily reduced insize, thereby enhancing manufacturability.

Further, in this embodiment, the wave conductor 3 constituting the wavewound coil 3C has the first winding section 3 f and the second windingsection 3 s, and two windings of the wave conductor 3 are wound on thebobbin 71. Accordingly, the wave wound coil 3C is structured such thatthe side portions 31, the one-side connecting portions 33, and theother-side connecting portions 35 are wound for two windings so as to bearranged two each in the coil radial direction CR. Therefore, two sideportions 31 in different windings of the wave conductor 3 are arrangedadjacent to each other in the coil radial direction CR. The one-sideconnecting portions 33 and the other-side connecting portions 35 arearranged similarly. Two one-side connecting portions 33 in differentwindings of the wave conductor 3 are arranged adjacent to each other inthe coil radial direction CR, and two other-side connecting portion 35in different windings of the wave conductor 3 are arranged adjacent toeach other in the coil radial direction CR.

10. Other Embodiments

(1) The above described embodiment has been described with an example inwhich the first bending process P5 and the second bending process P6 areperformed such that, when the cross-sectional shapes of the sideportions 31 are a rectangular shape, two sides in parallel with eachother of the rectangular cross sections of the side portions 31 have adirection along the coil radial direction CR in a state that the waveconductor 3 is shaped into a substantially cylindrical wave wound coil3C. However, embodiments of the present invention are not limitedthereto, and the present invention may be applied to other embodimentsas long as the directions of the cross-sectional shapes of the sideportions 31 are in a constant direction with respect to the coil radialdirection CR in a state of being shaped into a substantially cylindricalwave wound coil 3C. In other words, the present invention may be appliedas long as all of the plurality of side portions 31 of the wave woundcoil 3C arranged in the coil circumferential direction CC are aligned ina constant direction with respect to the coil radial direction CR.Therefore, for example, in another embodiment of the present invention,when the cross-sectional shapes of the side portions 31 are arectangular shape, two sides in parallel with each other of therectangular cross section may have a direction inclined at apredetermined angle with respect to the coil radial direction CR.

(2) Further, a cross-sectional shape of the linear conductor 3L havingdirectionality is not limited to a rectangular cross section, and linearconductors 3L with various cross-sectional shapes excluding a circularcross-sectional shape may be used. Therefore, for example, a linearconductor with a cross-sectional shape having a contour formed ofstraight lines and curves, such as a polygonal shape, an elliptic shape,a shape obtained by linearly cutting a part of a circle, or the like,can be used. Further, in another preferred embodiment of the presentinvention, a linear conductor with a cross-sectional shape having twosides in parallel with each other may be used, and other portionsthereof may be formed of a curved face such as an arc face, a polygonalface, and/or the like. In these linear conductors 3L with variouscross-sectional shapes, it is preferable that determination of thedirections of the cross-sectional shapes of the side portions 31, whichare constant directions with respect to the coil radial direction CR, bemade appropriately depending on the purpose of use of the wave woundcoil 3C. In any case, all of the plurality of side portions 31 of thewave wound coil 3C are set in the same direction with respect to thecoil radial direction CR in a state that the final wave coil 3C isformed. Note that when the cross-sectional shapes are a shape having twosides in parallel with each other, it is particularly preferable thatthe two parallel sides be in a direction orthogonal to the coil radialdirection CR. Further, in this case, in another preferred structure, thetwo parallel sides may be in a direction in parallel with the coilradial direction CR, or more particularly, the line of symmetry of thetwo parallel sides may have a direction that matches the coil radialdirection CR. Also in this case, the two parallel sides may be arrangedto incline at predetermined angles with respect to the coil radialdirection CR.

(3) The above described embodiment has been described with an example inwhich two windings of the wave conductor 3 are wound on the bobbin 71.However, embodiments of the present invention are not limited thereto.Therefore, in another preferred embodiment of the present invention, thewave conductor 3 may be wound just for one winding on the bobbin 71 toproduce the wave wound coil 3C of one winding, or the wave conductor 3may be wound for three or more windings on the bobbin 71 to produce thewave wound coil 3C of three or more windings. When the wave conductor 3is wound for a plurality of windings, a plurality of side portions 31, aplurality of one-side connecting portions 33, and a plurality ofother-side connecting portions 35 may be arranged in the coil radialdirection CR.

(4) The order of the processes described in the above embodiment is anexample, and can be interchanged appropriately. For example, the orderof the one-side adjustment bending process P2 a, the other-sideadjustment bending process P2 b, the other-side bending process P3, andthe step shaping process P4 can be interchanged appropriately. Further,in another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the coilmanufacturing method may not have a part or all of these four processes.Moreover, in another preferred embodiment of the present invention, thecoil manufacturing method may not have the wave conductor formingprocess P1, and the wave conductor 3 shaped in advance in a rectangularwaveform may be supplied to perform predetermined processing on thesupplied wave conductor 3. Further, in another preferred embodiment ofthe present invention, the order of the first bending process P5 and thesecond bending process P6 may be interchanged. In this manner, when thecontents and/or order of the processes of the coil manufacturing methodare changed, the arrangement of the units for performing the processesof the coil manufacturing apparatus 1 is changed appropriately.

(5) The above described embodiment has been described with an example inwhich intermittent transfer in the transfer process Pf is performed insynchronization with the second bending process P6 and the windingprocess P7. However, the processes P6 and P7 and the transfer process Pfmay be performed separately, and it is preferable that the transferprocess Pf be performed after the second bending process P6 and thewinding process P7 are performed, or the second bending process P6 andthe winding process P7 be performed after the transfer process Pf isperformed.

(6) The above described embodiment has been described with an example inwhich the one-side connecting portion 33 is arc shaped connectingportion, which is substantially entirely shaped into a substantially arcshape, and the other-side connecting portion 35 is V-shaped connectingportion, which is shaped in a substantially V shape by bending at oneposition. However, embodiments of the present invention are not limitedthereto. Therefore, in another preferred embodiment of the presentinvention, both the one-side connecting portions 33 and the other-sideconnecting portions 35 may be V-shaped connecting portions, or both theone-side connecting portions 33 and the other-side connecting portions35 may be arc shaped connecting portions. Further, in another preferredembodiment of the present invention, the one-side connecting portions 33may be V-shaped connecting portions, and the other-side connectingportions 35 may be arc shaped connecting portions. Further, at leasteither of the one-side connecting portions 33 and the other-sideconnecting portions 35 may be bent and shaped into a shape other thanthe substantially arc shape and the substantially V shape.

(7) The above described embodiment has been described with an example inwhich the swing fulcrum 53 of the movable die 52 of the first bendingunit 5 is at a fixed position with respect to the fixed die 51. However,embodiments of the present invention are not limited thereto. Therefore,as shown in FIG. 35, another preferred embodiment of the presentinvention may be structured to further include a reciprocating unit 53Acapable of reciprocating the swing fulcrum 53 in a direction in whichthe movable shaping face 56 of the movable die 52 approaches or departsfrom the fixed shaping face 55 of the fixed die 51. In the illustratedexample, the reciprocating unit 53A reciprocates the swing fulcrum 53 ina direction (here a substantially orthogonal direction) to cross thelinear material length direction LL (here a direction substantially inparallel with the transfer direction F) of the one-side connectingportions 33. As this reciprocating unit 53A, for example, a direct driveunit such as a unit combining a stepping motor and a ball screw, whichare not shown, for reciprocating the swing fulcrum 53 may be used.Providing such a reciprocating unit 53A facilitates feeding of theone-side connecting portions 33 to the space between the fixed shapingface 55 and the movable shaping face 56 at a position where the movabledie 52 is separated from the fixed die 51. While securing such facilityof feeding, at a position where the movable die 52 has approached to thefixed die 51, the distance D5 between the movable shaping face 56 andthe fixed shaping face 55 can be set shorter in the transfer directionupstream side end portion 55 a. Therefore, as compared to the case wherethe reciprocating unit 53A is not provided, there is an advantage thatit is easy to create a state that, when the one-side connecting portion33 is processed by the first bending unit 5, an end of the one-sideconnecting portion 33 on the transfer direction upstream side Fa issandwiched earlier between the fixed die 51 and the movable die 52 andbecomes difficult to move as compared to a portion of the one-sideconnecting portion 33 on the transfer direction downstream side Fb. Inaddition, when such a reciprocating unit 53A is provided, it ispreferable that in a state that at least the movable shaping face 56 ofthe movable die 52 has approached the fixed die 51 side, the swingfulcrum 53 be arranged within the above-described fulcrum arrangementpossible area 5A.

(8) The above described embodiment has been described with an example inwhich each of the fixed shaping face 55 and the movable shaping face 56has one step portion in the extending direction of each shaping face.However, embodiments of the present invention are not limited thereto.Therefore, in another preferred embodiment of the present invention,each of the fixed shaping face 55 and the movable shaping face 56 may beformed as a substantially arc shaped face having no step portion in theextending direction of each shaping face. Further, in another preferredembodiment of the present invention, each of the fixed shaping face 55and the movable shaping face 56 has a plurality of step portions in theextending direction of each shaping face.

(9) The above described embodiment has been described with an example inwhich the bending position of the second bending process P6 (secondbending unit 6) is set at a position of 1.5 pitch (1.5 wave cycle) onthe transfer direction downstream side Fb from the bending position ofthe first bending process P5 (first bending unit 5). However,embodiments of the present invention are not limited thereto. However,it is desired that the bending position of the second bending process P6be set at a position separated by one or more wave cycles PT on thetransfer direction downstream side Fb from the bending position of thefirst bending process P5 along the transfer direction F of the waveconductor 3. Further, when the bobbin 71 is arranged lower than thebending position of the first bending process P5, it is desired that thebending position of the second bending process P6 be at a position onthe transfer direction upstream side Fa with respect to the bottom endposition 71L of the bobbin 71 along the transfer direction F of the waveconductor 3. As an example of such a bending position of the secondbending process P6, FIG. 36 shows a positional relationship of thecomponents when the bending position of the second bending process P6(second bending unit 6) is set at a position at 2.5 pitches (2.5 wavecycles) on the transfer direction downstream side Fb from the bendingposition of the first bending process P5 (first bending unit 5).

(10) The configuration of the second bending process P6 is not limitedto the structure of the above embodiment. For example, in anotherpreferred embodiment of the present invention, similarly to the firstbending process P5, a fixed die and a movable die each having asubstantially V shaped shaping face may be used to press the other-sideconnecting portion 35 between the fixed die and the movable die to bendthe other-side connecting portion 35 into a substantially V shape.

(11) The above described embodiment has been described with an exampleof a structure to move the bobbin 71 along the straight movement traceE4 both when performing the first bending process P5 and when performingthe second bending process P6, the winding process P7, and the transferprocess Pf. However, embodiments of the present invention are notlimited thereto. Therefore, in another preferred embodiment of thepresent invention, the bobbin 71 may be moved along each of the firstideal movement trace E1, the second ideal movement trace E2, and theintermittent transfer trace E3 described above. In this case, to enablemovement of such a bobbin 71, it is preferable that the bobbin movementunit 73 be structured using a unit capable of moving the bobbin 71 toany given position on a plane such as an XY table, for example.

(12) The above described embodiment has been described with an examplein which intermittent transfer is performed with one wave cycle PT ofthe wave conductor 3 being one pitch in the transfer process Pf, butembodiments of the present invention are not limited thereto. Therefore,in another preferred embodiment of the present invention, in thetransfer process Pf intermittent transfer may be performed with thelength of other than one wave cycle PT, such as 0.5 wave cycle, of thewave conductor 3 being one pitch, for example. Further, the waveconductor 3 may be transferred sequentially at constant speed in thetransfer process Pf. In this case, it is preferable that the processesbe movable in the transfer direction of the wave conductor 3.

The present invention may preferably be applied to a coil manufacturingmethod and a coil manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing asubstantially cylindrical wave wound coil by shaping a linear conductorwith a cross-sectional shape having directionality.

1. A coil manufacturing method for manufacturing a wave wound coil in asubstantially cylindrical shape by shaping a linear conductor with across-sectional shape having directionality, the method comprising:transferring a wave conductor that is a linear conductor shaped in asubstantially rectangular waveform, and has a plurality of straight sideportions extending in a wave width direction, one-side connectingportions sequentially connecting every other pair of adjacent sideportions at ends on a one wave width direction side, and other-sideconnecting portions sequentially connecting pairs of adjacent sideportions that are not connected by the one-side connecting portions atends on an other wave width direction side; bending a target connectingportion, which is at least one of the one-side connecting portions andthe other-side connecting portions of the wave conductor, at oneposition thereof to shape the target connecting portion into asubstantially V shape so that the plurality of side portions arearranged along a coil circumferential direction and directions ofcross-sectional shapes of the side portions are in a constant directionwith respect to a coil radial direction; and winding on a bobbin thewave conductor that is bent in the bending.
 2. The coil manufacturingmethod according to claim 1, wherein in the bending, an inner peripheraldie having an arc face on a portion contacting the target connectingportion is used to bend the target connecting portion at one positionalong the inner peripheral die to shape a portion of the targetconnecting portion in a linear material length direction into asubstantially arc shape, so as to shape the entire target connectingportion into a substantially V shape.
 3. The coil manufacturing methodaccording to claim 2, wherein in the bending, an outer peripheral diehaving an arc face on the portion contacting the target connectingportion is further used, and the outer peripheral die arranged to facethe inner peripheral die across the target connecting portion is swungabout an arc center of the arc face of the inner peripheral die so as tobend the target connecting portion.
 4. The coil manufacturing methodaccording to claim 3, wherein in the bending, in a state that a portionof the target connecting portion on one side in the linear materiallength direction with respect to the outer peripheral die is supportedto inhibit movement of the portion toward at least the outer peripheraldie side in a linear material width direction, the outer peripheral dieis swung toward the other side in the linear material length directionof the target connecting portion.
 5. The coil manufacturing methodaccording to claim 3, wherein in the bending, a bend tool including theinner peripheral die and the outer peripheral die is used, the bend toolbeing structured to be movable in a direction to approach or depart fromthe bobbin, and structured such that the target connecting portion isinserted between the inner peripheral die and the outer peripheral diein a state of being moved toward the bobbin side, and the bend tool ismoved toward the bobbin side when bending the target connecting portion.6. The coil manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein in thewinding, the bobbin is rotated and moved in synchronization with thebending so as to wind the wave conductor on the bobbin.
 7. The coilmanufacturing method according to claim 6, wherein on an outerperipheral face of the bobbin, a plurality of side portion retainingunits structured to retain the side portions of the wave conductor areprovided along a circumferential direction of the bobbin, the bending isperformed in a state that the side portion located on one side in thelinear material length direction of the target connecting portion isretained in the side portion retaining units, and in the winding, theside portion located on the other side in the linear material lengthdirection of the target connecting portion is retained in the sideportion retaining units by rotating and moving the bobbin insynchronization with the bending.
 8. The coil manufacturing methodaccording claim 1, wherein in the winding, the wave conductor is woundon the bobbin for a plurality of windings, and after the plurality ofwindings are wound, the target connecting portions of different windingsof the wave conductor are plurally arranged in the coil radialdirection.
 9. The coil manufacturing method according to claim 8,wherein in the bending, the inner peripheral die and the outerperipheral die which each have the arc face on the portion contactingthe target connecting portion and are arranged to face each other areused, and when bending the target connecting portion of a second windingand thereafter, the outer peripheral die arranged to face the innerperipheral die across the target connecting portion of a plurality ofwindings is swung about an arc center of the arc face of the innerperipheral die so as to bend the target connecting portion of asucceeding winding at one position along the target connecting portionof a preceding winding which is already bent.
 10. The coil manufacturingmethod according to claim 1, wherein a direction substantiallyorthogonal to a face of the wave conductor before shaped into asubstantially cylindrical shape is taken as a reference directionrelated to a direction of cross-sectional shapes of the side portions,and in the bending, the target connecting portion is bent so that thereference direction is in a direction along the coil radial direction.11. The coil manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein thelinear conductor has a rectangular cross-sectional shape.
 12. A coilmanufacturing apparatus for manufacturing a wave wound coil in asubstantially cylindrical shape by shaping a linear conductor with across-sectional shape having directionality, the apparatus comprising: atransfer unit transferring a wave conductor that is a linear conductorshaped in a substantially rectangular waveform, and has a plurality ofstraight side portions extending in a wave width direction, one-sideconnecting portions sequentially connecting every other pair of adjacentside portions at ends on a one wave width direction side, and other-sideconnecting portions sequentially connecting pairs of adjacent sideportions that are not connected by the one-side connecting portions atends on an other wave width direction side; a connecting portion bendingunit bending a target connecting portion, which is at least one of theone-side connecting portions and the other-side connecting portions ofthe wave conductor, at one position thereof to shape the targetconnecting portion into a substantially V shape so that the plurality ofside portions are arranged along a coil circumferential direction anddirections of cross-sectional shapes of the side portions are in aconstant direction with respect to a coil radial direction; a bobbinwinding the wave conductor that is bent by the connecting portionbending unit; and a bobbin rotation unit capable of rotating the bobbinabout a center axis.
 13. The coil manufacturing apparatus according toclaim 12, wherein the connecting portion bending unit includes a bendtool having an inner peripheral die and an outer peripheral die whicheach have an arc face on a portion contacting the target connectingportion and are arranged to face each other, the outer peripheral diebeing swingable about an arc center of the arc face of the innerperipheral die, and the bend tool is structured to be movable in adirection to approach or depart from the bobbin, and structured suchthat the target connecting portion is inserted between the innerperipheral die and the outer peripheral die in a state of being movedtoward the bobbin side.
 14. The coil manufacturing apparatus accordingto claim 12, wherein a direction substantially orthogonal to a face ofthe wave conductor before shaped into a substantially cylindrical shapeis taken as a reference direction related to a direction ofcross-sectional shapes of the side portions, and the connecting portionbending unit bends the target connecting portion so that the referencedirection is in a direction along the coil radial direction.
 15. Thecoil manufacturing apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the linearconductor has a rectangular cross-sectional shape.
 16. A coil formed byshaping a linear conductor with a cross-sectional shape havingdirectionality into a substantially rectangular waveform and then into asubstantially cylindrical shape, the coil comprising: a plurality ofstraight side portions extending in a coil axis direction; one-sideconnecting portions sequentially connecting every other pair of sideportions adjacent in a coil circumferential direction at ends on a oneaxial direction side; and other-side connecting portions sequentiallyconnecting pairs of side portions adjacent in the coil circumferentialdirection that are not connected by the one-side connecting portions atends on an other axial direction side, wherein the plurality of sideportions are arranged along the coil circumferential direction withdirections of cross-sectional shapes of the side portions being in aconstant direction with respect to a coil radial direction, and at leasteither of the one-side connecting portions and the other-side connectingportions are V-shaped connecting portions each bent at one position andshaped into a substantially V shape so as to project outward in the coilradial direction.
 17. The coil according to claim 16, wherein a portionin the wave width direction of a wave conductor including the V-shapedconnecting portions is bent inward in the coil radial direction to besubstantially in parallel with a plane orthogonal to the coil axisdirection.
 18. The coil according to claim 16, wherein at least eitherof the one-side connecting portions and the other-side connectingportions have a bent portion shaped into a substantially arc shape in aportion in a linear material length direction, and are entirely in asubstantially V shape having straight portions which extend linearly onboth sides of the bent portion.
 19. The coil according to claim 16,wherein either of the one-side connecting portions and the other-sideconnecting portions are shaped into a substantially V shape that is bentat one position so as to project outward in the coil radial direction,and the remaining of the one-side connecting portions and the other-sideconnecting portions are shaped substantially entirely into asubstantially arc shape so as to project outward in the coil radialdirection.
 20. The coil according to claim 16, wherein the sideportions, the one-side connecting portions, and the other-sideconnecting portions are wound for a plurality of windings so that theside portions, the one-side connecting portions, and the other-sideconnecting portions are plurally arranged in the coil radial direction.21. The coil according to claim 16, wherein the linear conductor has arectangular cross-sectional shape.
 22. The coil according to claim 21,wherein two sides in parallel with each other in a rectangular crosssection of the side portions are in a direction along the coil radialdirection.